DIA80xH60mm, China
No, this is not rudolph. Yes, the red nose is missing. For the Chinese, not only does the deer symbolizes longevity, it also represented success as an official. This cute container is a the base of a mortar, its small size suggest its for grinding medicinal seeds or nuts, e.g. garlic, pepper etc.
W130xD130xH150m, China
A small wooden box with brass handles and buckles, perfect for a treasure hunt.
I have been wondering what a box like this would be for. The lock is rather redundant as the box is so small that the thief would have just grab it and go. Perhaps its a box for a child to keep all the little precious items; a pebble from the beach, a ginkgo leave, an unknown seed, a dice, feather of some bird, a seashell …
L310xW180 (when folded)
W400xH250, China
This is a holder for Buddhism script that is made of bamboo, it can be folded for easy transportation. Since its invention over 1000 year ago, it has also been adopted to be used as a book stand. The angle of the tilt for the book can be adjusted to suit the position of the reader. It was one of the stationary items for the wealthy scholars which is now all to be replaced by the mighty ipad.
L210xD140xH100, China
Narcissus, daffodil, is a very popular plant in China especially for the Chinese New Year. So popular that there is a special container for its presentation. A month before Chinese New Year, one would find daffodil bulbs for sale in the market. The bulb would be placed inside the bowl, secured by pebbles and 2/3 of it cover with water. Up till the days before flowering, the water would be replaced daily, when it started to flower every 3 days. When the shoots started to appear, locate the bowl to a sunny but cool place. As daffodil is part of the New Year decoration, it is almost essential that it is blooming with flowers on New Year’s day, this normally takes 25 days at 20C, if lacks behind a bit of warm water on New Year’s eve would normally do the trick. And if all fails, one can always pay a bit more for the perfectly planted daffodil at the flower market.
CIR 55mm (UK size O), China
I had a similar ring when I was a teenager, it was one of my favorite. It has a “pure silver” mark in Chinese (but as a human guinea pig I can verify that it is really pure silver as I suffer badly with metal allergy, only pure gold and silver would pass the test, how posh is that!)
Enamel was brought into China from France in the Qing dynasty (17th century) and was immediately adored by Emperor; workshops for the court were set up in Imperial Court in Beijing and in Guangdong. It then became popular throughout the country during the reign of the next 2 emperors. The type of enamel produced in China was mainly cloisonne, where a thin wire is applied to form cells to hold the enamel.
W70xL160xH60mm, China
For something much lighter today is a tin toy of a carp swallowing a smaller fish. Wind it up and you will see the carp chasing the other fish which finally disappear altogether inside the bigger fish.
Something of a similar theme, see out post fish bag.
W200xD150xH500mm, China
This figurine was made from the famous Shi Wan pottery town in the Guang Dong region. Their figurines are typical to have a glazeless delicate facial and hand depiction while contrasting with an expressive and bold glazing on the clothing. Another example can be seen in an earlier post, “Shi Wan Figurines“.
The general depicted here is one of the “3 good blokes” of the Tang dynasty, Pei Yuan Qing, his weapon is a pair of golden melon hammer.
You will be seen in this clip how the weapon is being used (well at least in the Beijing opera). This is a graduation show from the students of the Beijing opera school.
My dog spike has started sighing, ok ok, I promise no more Chinese opera reference for a while.
H100xW50xD60mm, China
Wonder what a villain looks like? This is a typical villain of the Chinese glove puppet, all villains have a white painted face with black features. A word of caution: the white face villains came in all different ages, from a young chap to the bad government official and finally the elderly villain. The shown in the photo here is one of the main villain in a puppet show, someone who has high power and no fear, for example, a prime minister who gave manipulate the emperor etc.
W40xD20xH120mm, China
This is a figurine of the God of Longevity in an early post. You might notice that he is always carrying a long cane; this cane came from the state banquet held for all the OAP (the 70+) in the East Han dynasty. The emperor had the cane specially made for all those who attended the party, the cane symbolized the privileges that were awarded to the elderly. The head of the cane was decorated with a turtledove thus its called a turtledove cane.
W40xD60xH200mm, China
This is a pair of wooden candle stand that would have been mounted on a metal or wooden base, the candle would be fixed on top of the wooden stick. Traditional Chinese candles besides having a wick embedded, a small bamboo rod is also embedded on the bottom end. The bamboo rod made it easier for securing the candle, may it be on a candle stand, in the sand or simply in the ground. This pair of candle stand has a relief carving of the dragon, painted in red and gold, symbolizing blessings, they would have been used for happy occasions like grand birthdays, promotions, birth of a child, etc.
Mountain Folkcraft 