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March 28, 2024, 08:22:15 am
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Basketweave soapstone bottle.

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forestman
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« on: July 20, 2018, 10:57:53 am »

This is the other bottle I won at the Zacke auction.

Soapstone bottle of flattened rounded form with a flat foot and carved with a basketweave pattern. 53mm high and missing it's spoon. From a private Austrian collection bought prior to 1930 and handed down by descent.

Regards, Adrian.


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Rube
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« Reply #1 on: July 20, 2018, 01:16:41 pm »

Yay Adrian!
I almost bid on this, so I’m glad you ended up with it. Nice basketweave, especially near the base.

Congrats,
Rube
« Last Edit: July 21, 2018, 08:26:33 am by Rube » Report Spam   Logged

Rube, 4th Generation Collector

forestman
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« Reply #2 on: July 20, 2018, 01:51:27 pm »

Hi Rube,

Glad you didn't bid on it as it meant I got hold off it cheaper   Grin

It might be the picture but the carving is consistent all over the bottle and fairly well done.

Regards, Adrian.
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Joey Silver / Si Zhouyi 義周司
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« Reply #3 on: July 20, 2018, 03:04:43 pm »

Dear Adrian,

      That looks like another finely made 18th C. bottle.
But is that a bad crack, or a natural fissure in the material.
From the photo it looks like serious damage.
Wonderful stopper, though. If you need a spoon, let me know. I bought a lot of bamboo spoons from Jill, and also have some bone spoons.
Best,
Shabbat Shalom,
Joey
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Joey Silver (Si Zhouyi 義周司), collecting snuff bottles since Feb.1970

Jungle Jas
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« Reply #4 on: July 20, 2018, 03:06:31 pm »

Hi Rube,

Glad you didn't bid on it as it meant I got hold off it cheaper   Grin

It might be the picture but the carving is consistent all over the bottle and fairly well done.

Regards, Adrian.

Hi Adrian, the basket weave is a lot better than many I have see of late. Well done. Jas.
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Fiveroosters aka clayandbrush
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« Reply #5 on: July 21, 2018, 02:51:19 am »

Another nice bottle dear Adrian.
Is it soapstone? It looks like of being made by some hardest stone.
I believe that the crack has a natural origin, but it must have been developed in time. I think so because I see that the neck is prone to detach from the body, and I suppose that, if it was like that originally, the carver would discard it.
Kind regards
Giovanni
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forestman
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« Reply #6 on: July 21, 2018, 04:49:50 am »

I think the crack is something that has occurred naturally over time, there are numerous other small cracks in the stone. There are no signs of the bottle being damaged through being dropped.

I looked at the crack through a loupe and could see it has been over filled with something so have cleaned it up. It was some sort of hard waxy type substance that was similar to one used as a repair on what had been a very good quality overlay bottle I have that has lost it's neck.

Regards, Adrian.
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Joey Silver / Si Zhouyi 義周司
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« Reply #7 on: July 21, 2018, 05:15:39 am »

Dear Adrian,

     The Chinese used beeswax to fill in fissures in Coral and in other materials. If that was beeswax, it could have been there from the start.
Best,
Joey
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Joey Silver (Si Zhouyi 義周司), collecting snuff bottles since Feb.1970

OIB
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« Reply #8 on: August 14, 2018, 11:58:21 pm »

Adrian,

The raw look of the stone carve wth this subject is really very pleasing to look at. The carving was quite well executed to me, crisp and defined. As ' soapstone ' comes from different locations in the mountain areas around Fuzhou city in the Fujian province of China, they vary in quality and textures. some of my friends collect soapstone [ 寿山石 ] carvings and my understanding is that soapstone snuff bottles are not many to come by. I have one done by a middle-aged Fuzhou carver, Lin, whose head of the family is renowned for carving polar bears with soapstones.

Inn Bok



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forestman
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« Reply #9 on: August 17, 2018, 03:28:00 am »

Hi Inn Bok,

I would have assumed your bottle to have been agate, interesting to see how varied it can be.

I like the carving and how much space there is around it.

Regards, Adrian.
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OIB
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« Reply #10 on: August 17, 2018, 04:26:39 am »

Adrian,

At first I too thought that the material was agate / chalcedony. But the artist, who incised his name
[ 林飞 ] ( Lin Fei ) along the lower half of one of the shoulders, apparently made this bottle out of some ramnant small pieces of Shoushan stone. He usually carved objects double the size of this bottle. This was confirmed by his lady partner-in-business. I did not manage to meet him when he was in Singapore, otherwise I would have a picture taken with him and the bottle in my hand  Smiley Smiley Smiley

The ample space on the bottle as commented by you fit well with the traditional Chinese painting of avoiding ' crowdedness '. Like other Shoushan objects, once a while I have to oil my hand a bit and then fonder this bottle to prevent it from ' drying up '.

Inn Bok
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