Indian Bar Chain with Open Hooks

The hook curls like a dragon’s tail. Everything after it behaves.

Craftsmen in India made this bar chain with open hooks in brass in the 20th century. Bar chains like this are commonly associated with hanging swings, lamps and household fittings. Here the top hook ends in a scrolling, flattened tip, followed by hexagonal links with openwork centers. Then come turned baluster segments, each joined to the next with open rings. The brass is dark and warm, with the faintest greenish tint in the creases and slight pitting from age.

About 64 inches long. Suspend it from a beam and let it hang.