1. The Qing Dynasty divided empresses into eight grades, namely: Empress, Imperial concubine, Imperial concubine, concubine, noble person, constant attendant and promise. Armor was worn in the imperial palace in the Qing dynasty, but it was also graded. The lower grade was always allowed, and the nobles were not qualified to wear it.

2. Empresses and concubines in the Qing Dynasty all loved to keep long nails to show their noble women's delicate fingers, which did not touch the elegance and beauty of spring water, but the nails were too long and easy to break. In order to protect this slender and fragile nail, it is necessary to put a sleeve on the nail, which is the origin of finger protection device.

3. The nail cover is also the jewelry for the harem concubines to prove their identity. In the Qing dynasty, this finger protector was regarded as one of the royal jewels and became special for the court. There is no clear grade for fingernails, but the higher the grade, the more expensive it is. All fingers can be worn except the thumb, symmetrically, with one hand or one finger.

The fingernails of Empresses and Concubines in Qing Dynasty were made of gold, silver, jade, tortoise shell, copper, enamel and other materials. By using decorative techniques such as hollowing out, chiseling and inlaying, the size of the pattern is gathered from the base to the fingertips, which is natural and smooth, and the back is mostly carved with little shielding, which can make the air circulate.

Extended data:

In the Qing dynasty, the upper class aristocrats generally wore clothes to make a living, and they didn't need to do it themselves. Of course, they could keep their nails. Representing the wealth in the family is naturally cited as the trend. The ancients left nails, not just long ones. I also do all kinds of decorations on my nails and clean them daily. This kind of long armor can make my hands look slender, which is still very beautiful in the eyes of people at that time.

The armor cover became a necessary ornament for concubines. There are many fingernails handed down in Qing dynasty, which may be related to the clothing of Manchu women. In fact, the aesthetics of the nobles in the Qing Dynasty is very simple, that is, the bigger, the higher and the longer, the better. The dress of Manchu ladies is very suitable for protecting fingers. So it was very popular in Qing dynasty. At the same time, on the basis of practicality, it gradually develops to the trend of exquisite, beautiful and expensive, which makes female finger protection form a culture.

References:

Baidu Encyclopedia-Armor Cover

References:

Baidu Encyclopedia-Empress System in Qing Dynasty