I just bought this very simply decorated lacquerware bowl (I like simple ). I don't know the material under the lacquer: wood? bamboo? Quite light anyway. My main question is where it's from? I would think from Asia, although the gold stars on black (or dark red) is a quite comon decoration style on antique dutch pewter (would be heavier) and tin (would be magnetic, which it isn't). Myanmar maybe, or Japan? Just can't find any similar examples. The rim is rounded and thicker the top of the bowl (flaring out a bit). Measurements Ø 21 x 9 cm.
Very pretty, John. I'm looking at the vertical lines in the last picture, Myanmar lacquer is applied to a coiled bamboo base. Bagan lacquer: Thai lacquer too. Chiang Mai lacquer: I expect the other SE Asian lacquer producing countries use the same coiled technique. A bit of a mystery.
I kind of knew that it was made that way, but didn't link it to the direction of the cracks. Strange indeed! The cracks on the inside are visible on the outside too, so it does seem to originate from the base.
Cracks like that might be expected from a wooden bowl maybe? But the wall of this bowl is too thin (about 2 mm) for wood, i think. Or from a cross section of a very thick bamboo stem? Maybe the straight part of the bowl is from a cross section of a thick bamboo stem and the curved lower part from coiled bamboo strips?
I have some older Vietnamese lacquer, brought out before the fall of Saigon . Simple but delicious ...
Found another production method for base on asian-urushi.com, also Myanmar. Maybe the base on the right is more prone to vertical cracks? Actually on the picture from AJ above the person in the work with this type of base too.
I think you're right, and that would show vertical lines after some aging. Btw, I thought the person just behind the central one in the first picture was working on a lacquered parasol. A bit like these:
I can see why you would think that. But I think it's a mould for a bowl, to big for an umbrella hub and quite a different process.
Well, question of the base material answered I think. That would be bamboo right? Still would like to know from which country, although with so many options very difficult probably! Anyone?