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Chinese Snuff Bottle Discussion Forum 中國鼻煙壺討論論壇
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More wood bottles

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Joey Silver / Si Zhouyi 義周司
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« Reply #20 on: December 12, 2012, 08:04:19 am »

Tom,
  To solve that problem (insects getting into books etc.) in Hawaii, I received a piece of camphor wood 200 mm X 40 mm X 3 mm, from a friend who made fine furniture. I broke it into a few pieces, got 3 ziploc gallon bags, put a piece of the camphor wood in each bag, and my prayer shawl in one bag; my Tefilin and little prayerbook in a second; and my big prayerbook and Bible in the third, sealed them, and since, had no problem from insects with the bagged items.
Joey
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« Reply #21 on: December 12, 2012, 04:06:15 pm »

Dear Tom,
since young I have been interested about woods and Botany in general. I am a technician, my current job (I am in pension but still working) is dynamic brake systems for locomotives. In the past, I did work in the Electrical Power Plants field. Due to that, I did spent some years in Brazil between 1968 and 1975. There I was fascinated by the beautiful veneer of the main doors of prestigious houses. So, many years later, when I bought my house and started to restore it, I decided to order all the doors, windows etc. in Brazil. It has not been easy, I had to travel there three times especially for this task. The main problem was to find the right wood, because due to the not rigid winters there, it is not usual to have double glass at the windows, so the sawmill do saw the planks at a not sufficient thickness. After long searches I found a carpenter that had in stock a good quantity of thicker planks, well seasoned because stocked for long time just because of the too high thickness. Wonder of wonders, the planks was of Ocotea Porosa, a nowadays rare wood. It is a superb wood, a botanical phenomenon because it only grows in the Iguaçu river valley, between Paranà and Santa Catarina states. The native vegetation of that area is almost pure forest of Araucaria, a giant conifer. Scattered among them, here and there are the Ocotea Porosa, commonly named Imbuia, which is of the Lauraceous family. Absolutely strange. Do not believe on what you can find on the net, that the occurrence is also in other areas. It is absolutely not true. That three is exclusive of the Iguaçu river valley and near around. In the past due to the beauty of the veneer it has been widely used for high quality furniture and even floor. Now the cut is forbidden, it is a rare species. The vein and color are extremely variable, a good bunch of pictures is seen in this link:
http://www.hobbithouseinc.com/personal/woodpics/imbuia.htm
Well to finish the story now all the outer and inner doors, windows, closet etc of my house are of this wood. And also that of my brother, since we leave in an ancient house that we had restored and divided in two.
Since I had to organize the shipping and so on, I took the opportunity and also ordered in Brazil the planking of the floors. For that I found a carpenter that had a good stock of the Brazilian National tree, the Ipè, a plant of the Tabebuia family. There are many types of Tabebuia. The one that I found is locally named Ipè tabaco, and it comes from the Amazonas region. It is very different from the Ipè lapacho, much more common, less hard, which grows in the Southern regions and Argentina. The Ipè tabaco is very hard and heavy. I saw in Brazil ancient floors made with large planks of that three, threatened only with bee wax for many years, and fell in love with it.
To conclude, I have knowledge of South American and European woods, but have less knowledge of Chinese wood.
Sorry to all for the long talk, I think that Tom has interest in hearing this because of his love for woods.
BTW in the last lot of bottles there was also a wooden one, shaped as a fish with metal inlay and matched stand. Being it not hollowed, but simply drilled, I think that it is not interesting. The best part is the spoon and stopper I think. The fish alone is 86 mm long.
Giovanni


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« Reply #22 on: December 12, 2012, 04:20:06 pm »

Dear Giovanni,
   DO NOT APOLOGISE! I found it facinating, not to mention awe-inspiring, that you'd go to such effort to get the wood doors, etc., you wanted. You must have wanted them very badly.
   Keep writing Giovanni! Smiley
Joey
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Joey Silver (Si Zhouyi 義周司), collecting snuff bottles since Feb.1970

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« Reply #23 on: December 12, 2012, 08:04:56 pm »


  To solve that problem (insects getting into books etc.) in Hawaii, I received a piece of camphor wood 200 mm X 40 mm X 3 mm, from a friend who made fine furniture.


Thanks Joey,
    That is a very good method of dealing with the insect problem, especially when traveling. I am after a long-term plan for my large library of books, some of which are very old and valuable. I currently put them in 'ziplok' re-sealable bags (can't do that with the larger ones), and place them in the freezer for 3-4 days. This kills any bugs or their eggs, but not mold. Only a limited number of books can fit in the freezer at a time, so a full rotation takes many tedious months. I once saw a camphorwood lined book case, and if I can get hold of enough wood I will build one for myself.
Tom
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« Reply #24 on: December 12, 2012, 08:38:11 pm »


To conclude, I have knowledge of South American and European woods, but have less knowledge of Chinese wood.
Sorry to all for the long talk, I think that Tom has interest in hearing this because of his love for woods.
BTW in the last lot of bottles there was also a wooden one, shaped as a fish with metal inlay and matched stand. Being it not hollowed, but simply drilled, I think that it is not interesting. The best part is the spoon and stopper I think. The fish alone is 86 mm long.


Dear Giovanni,
   Thanks you for sharing your passion for wood. Regrettably, I know very little about African or South American woods, as my main focus has been to identify and catalogue woods used in Chinese, Japanese and other oriental furniture. Thank you also for the link to Ocotea Porosa - I particularly like some of the 'figured' and 'blistered' grain patterns in this wood - really beautiful. And you are so lucky to have managed to use it in your home.
   BTW, the fish snuff bottle is very attractive. The wire inlay used for the fish-scales shows a high standard of workmanship. Do not be over-critical of the limited hollowing. For practical reasons many of the larger bottles were hollowed out just enough to hold a day's supply of snuff powder. If hollowed more than necessary the owner would have to use too much snuff to fill it! And yes, it has a very fine spoon too.
Tom
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« Reply #25 on: December 13, 2012, 03:08:32 am »

Tom,
   If you don't have too much of a space problem, I have a solution. If you do, but you have a good carpenter, it can still work.
  In the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, I used to see a lot of ugly, over-carved camphor chests out of Hong Kong. You should be able to find those  used, relatively cheaply. Or even new. They are really out of fashion. Buy a few to store your books, or 'cannibalise' them to supply the camphor wood for your bookcase.
Joey
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« Reply #26 on: December 13, 2012, 03:53:17 am »

Joey,
    That's a great idea. I know exactly the type of chest you mean. I don't think I have ever seen one in Bangkok - probably broken up for firewood long ago - but will have a look around.
Tom
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« Reply #27 on: December 13, 2012, 06:50:47 am »

Tom,
  I see them in a lot of auctions in Ireland, UK and USA/Canada, and they go for pennies. Always carved with crude 'oriental' landscapes with human figures.
 Good luck.
Joey
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« Reply #28 on: December 13, 2012, 09:32:44 am »

Dear Giovanni,

I agree with Tom, I think the bottle is very attactive,and the detail of the bottle shows high standard of workmanship, as I understand about the snuff collection is not same as antique collection, some antique bottles without fine workmanship is not valuable , but some fine made modern bottle can be very valuable, it take me a while to realize that, its quite different from antique collection.


Steven
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« Reply #29 on: December 13, 2012, 10:05:44 am »

Thank you dear Joey, Tom, Steven.
Dear Tom, about the insects eating your book, beside the freeze there is another method. You could try with the microwave own. Being dry paper it will not heat up, while the insects and their eggs, due to the water content, will boil.
I did read about this method but never try myself. You could try with a not valuable book. Perhaps it is somehow active for the mold too. I think that the freezer is perhaps worst for the mold.
Dear Steven, "as I understand about the snuff collection is not same as antique collection, some antique bottles without fine workmanship is not valuable , but some fine made modern bottle can be very valuable, it take me a while to realize that, its quite different from antique collection." That is exactly what I was going to realize after joining this forum, it is very good that you confirm that. It sounds indeed strange to whom is biased by the antique concept in general.
Well, after the good opinion of you Tom and Steven, I will recover the fish shaped bottle from the discarded ones and raise it to the rank of the good ones:). Thank you.
Giovanni
 
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« Reply #30 on: December 14, 2012, 12:41:58 am »


Dear Tom, about the insects eating your book, beside the freeze there is another method. You could try with the microwave own. Being dry paper it will not heat up, while the insects and their eggs, due to the water content, will boil.
I did read about this method but never try myself. You could try with a not valuable book. Perhaps it is somehow active for the mold too. I think that the freezer is perhaps worst for the mold.
 

Dear Giovanni,
    Thank you for your suggestion. I never heard about using the microwave to de-bug books. If the book has any moisture (from humid climate of the tropics) will this method damage the paper or binding? BTW, the freezer method I learned from a lecture on book preservation, as a good and cheap alternative to fumigation. Freezing is also the method used by an important archive library here in Bangkok.
    For mold they recommend wiping the surface with pure alcohol, and then leaving in direct sunlight for 1 hour. I have tried this, but the books soon get re-contaminated from new spores in the atmosphere or on other pages of the book (it's impossible to treat every page). With a home library of several hundred books it is difficult to 'quarantine' the treated ones, as sooner or later they rejoin the others on the bookshelf.
Tom
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« Reply #31 on: February 14, 2016, 09:54:47 pm »

All,

Being a Professional Forester I've always appreciate beautifully created items made of wood.  However given wood's natural characteristic of drying and checking over time if left unsealed, old intact snuff bottles of wood are uncommon.  Thus, those that seek out wooden snuff bottles may need to relinquish themselves possibly to collecting contemporary bottles of good quality.  Here is a recent acquisition and my first snuff bottle in wood.

Carved Wood Snuff Bottle:                     
Carved Camphor wood snuff bottle (Camphor Laurel: Cinnamomum camphora) of flattened rectangular form, with a design of cranes amongst rock outcrops with pine trees to either side, in light relief; matching stopper with ivory spoon.  Interior is fairly well hollowed but left unfinished. Height 6.6 cm or 2 9/16" without stopper.

Period: Contemporary, Late 20th Century

Camphor Laurel is native to southeast Asia, widely planted throughout tropical and subtropical regions worldwide.  The Camphor tree at maturity is 65-100 ft (20-30 m) tall, 2-4 ft (.6-1.2 m) trunk diameter.

Color/Appearance: Color can be highly variable depending on species and growing conditions; generally a light brown, frequently with shades of gray, red, or olive green. Occasionally contains darker streaks. Paler sapwood isn’t always clearly differentiated from the heartwood. Burls are also commonly seen, and are considered highly decorative

Comments: Perhaps known more famously for its beautiful burls, Camphor is also cultivated for its aromatic oils, which are used in a variety of culinary and medicinal applications. Camphor has a very characteristic odor, for which the tree is named. The most recognizable product that contains the extracts of camphor are medicated chest rubs, which have the same distinct scent. In addition to its medicinal values, the lingering scent of Camphor is also reported to inhibit silver from tarnishing and ward off moths, and the wood is sometimes used in trunks and chests where valuables are stored.

Charll

   


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« Reply #32 on: February 14, 2016, 11:42:17 pm »

Charll

This is a beautifully executed bottle!  I really like the carving....
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« Reply #33 on: February 15, 2016, 05:10:08 am »

Charll,

Thanks for your post, and for reviving this thread. I like the classic flask shape of your bottle, and the carving is well done, albeit modern.

While not too common, I have seen a number of wood snuff bottles over the years, and have a few in my collection (see earlier posts on this thread). But I think this is the first I have ever come across made from camphor wood. I suspect that the strong aromatic qualities of this wood would have interfered with the flavor of the snuff powder, which may explain why it is not found on older bottles.

Tom
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« Reply #34 on: February 15, 2016, 01:55:06 pm »

Wonderful bottle Charll..

Like Tom,  I also like the flask shape.
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« Reply #35 on: February 17, 2016, 09:35:22 am »

Charll,

Never mind about it being new, your wooden bottle is a fine piece of carving. The right
proportion to be held in your palm for enjoyment.
It could be commissioned to be given away as a birthday present because 'pine' and
'Crane' are associated with long life in the Chinese culture. Please take a picture of yourself
holding it on your birthday 😊😊

I am also a lover of wooden items, including wooden snuff bottle. I will share it soon.

Inn Bok
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« Reply #36 on: April 01, 2016, 01:24:33 am »

To continue this thread, here is another wood bottle.

Description:
Burlwood snuff bottle of flattened, slightly tapering rounded rectangular form with a short cylindrical neck and flat lip, resting on a raised narrow oval footrim, with a recessed concave base; tao tie mask-and-ring handles at the shoulders, with an unusual prominent central curl to the hair, resembling the horn of a chi dragon. Wood stopper carved as a fou lion seated on the integral collar and ‘cork’, original.

Height w/o stopper: 5.6 cm

Provenance: the Arthur Gadsby Collection, Hong Kong

Comment:
The wood is a burl from a fruitwood, possibly pear. (Maybe Charll can identify it.) The patterns produced are reminiscent of crushed silk. The wood displays a slight chatoyancy as you turn it in the light, not unlike tiger's eye.

Enjoy!


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« Reply #37 on: April 01, 2016, 01:48:54 am »

Tom.

Nice bottle, ... Any idea of the age?
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« Reply #38 on: April 01, 2016, 02:15:12 am »

Thanks Pat,

The description it was packaged with said 1840-1920. That's a fairly wide range! Not sure if there's been enough research into wood bottles to narrow that down. 
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« Reply #39 on: April 01, 2016, 02:26:30 am »

Dear Tom,

Thanks for posting as I get to know more about wood bottles.
I really like the punk look on the side mask. Looks like flaming hair. Grin

Cheers,
YT
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