Arty Stash

My newest stash of the day comes from The Metropolitan Museum of Art New York!

Walked past the store today, and was attracted by the large words "Moving Out Sale"! It turns out that all Singapore outlets of the The Metropolitan Museum of Art New York will be closed soon with tomorrow, Wednesday 15/07/2009, the last day to grab some last minute deals!

I actually bought all these:

A pair of sterling silver spiral cufflinks with Javanese inspired designs!

A sterling silver Viking ring (this really looks like a tension ring setting at first glance)

and a pair of Apollo intaglio ear rings!You might be thinking.. that's strange.. why ear rings... truth is.. I will be turning this pair of ear rings into something else.. so stay tuned!

Black Obsidian Axe Head

This is crafted from Black Obsidian, which is a volcanic glass. Rather primitive looking, this axe head is pretty sharp.

One of the tools probably used by early Mankind!

More Chinese seals

More Chinese calligraph seals...

This one carved from picture jasper:


And this one carved from agate:

Serpentine Tea Pot

Another tea pot set carved from serpentine.

One big one.. and a smaller one...

they make a interesting conversation piece on the table. Have not tried making tea in them though!

Too precious to do so.

Agate Chinese Seal

This seal is carved from bright red agate.

You can see the bands of the agate on the main body.

Bought this piece from a trip in Taiwan!

Rutile in Quartz carving of bottle gourd

Here's a bottle gourd (hulu) carved out of rutiliated quartz.

Look at the nice gold needles in the carving!

The hulu is an ancient remedy for health. In the old days the doctors would carry medicine inside so it has fabled properties for healing. The hulu is believed to absorb negative earth-based qi (energy) that would otherwise affect health and is a traditional Chinese medicine cure. Dried calabash is also used as containers of liquids, often liquors or medicine. Calabash were also grown in earthen molds to form different shapes and dried to house pet crickets, which were kept for their song and fighting abilities. The texture of the gourd lends itself nicely to the sound of the animal, much like a musical instrument. It is a symbol of the Xian immortals.

Calcite butterfly on quartz

A simple wirework that mounts a butterfly with wings carved from orange calcite onto a quartz point.

Bright colours which liven up the surroundings!

Chinese seal carved from quartz

This is a chinese seal carved off quartz. The top part of the seal is a carving of a dragon.

Most people in China possess a personal name seal. Artists, scholars, collectors and intellectuals may possess a full set of name seals, leisure seals, and studio seals. A well-made seal made from semi-precious stones can cost between ¥400 and ¥4000.

Seals are still used for official purposes in a number of contexts. When collecting parcels or registered post, the name seal serves as an identification, akin to a signature. In banks, traditionally the method of identification was also by a seal. Seals remain the customary form of identification on cheques in Mainland China and Taiwan but not in Hong Kong where signatures are required. Today, personal identification is often by a hand signature accompanied by a seal imprint. Seals can serve as identification with signatures because they are difficult to forge (when compared to forging a signature) and only the owner has access to his own seal.

Seals are also often used on Chinese calligraphy works and Chinese paintings, usually imprinted in such works in the order (from top to bottom) of name seal, leisure seal(s), then studio seal. Owners or collectors of paintings or books will often add their own studio seals to pieces they have collected. This practice is an act of appreciation towards the work. Some artworks have had not only seals but inscriptions of the owner on them; for example, the Qianlong emperor had as many as 20 different seals for use with inscriptions on paintings he collected. Provided that it is tastefully done (for example, not obscuring the body of the painting, appropriate inscription, fine calligraphy, etc), this practice does not devalue the painting.

Seals are usually carved out by specialist seal carvers, or by the users themselves. Specialist carvers will carve the user's name into the stone in one of the standard scripts and styles described above, usually for a fee. On the other hand, some people take to carving their own seals using soapstone and fine knives, which are widely available and is cheaper than paying a professional for expertise, craft, and material. Results vary, but it is possible for individuals to carve perfectly legitimate seals for themselves.

Carved Teapots

This is another tea pot carved out of serpentine. As you can see, the workmanship is quite delicate!

It resembles a leaf when its lid is closed. View of pot when lid is opened, interior is hollowed like a true teapot!

Marbled Onyx Dolphins

These dolphins are carved out from marble oynx.... Carved beautifully and almost life like... the smaller dolphin accompanying the bigger one is cute too!

Like dolphins??

Check out:

Lapis Lazuli carved box

Blue and decorated with specks of gold-like pyrite, this lapis lazuli box is lined in the interior with white calcite marble!

Lapis lazuli is a rock, not a mineral: whereas a mineral has only one constituent, lapis lazuli is formed from more than one mineral.


Lapis Lazuli is a semi-precious stone prized since antiquity for its intense blue color.

Lapis lazuli has been mined in the Badakhshan province of Afghanistan for 6,500 years, and trade in the stone is ancient enough for lapis jewelry to have been found at Predynastic Egyptian sites, and lapis beads at neolithic burials in Mehrgarh, the Caucasus, and even as far from Afghanistan as Mauritania.

Jade sword

This jade sword is very intricately carved as you can see from the designs on the sheath. But most interestingly, a jade sword can be pulled out from the sheath!

Amazing?

Malachite Snuff Bottle

Anyone of my favourite snuff bottles..

This one is carved out of malachite

It has a floral design on one side, and a scene with fishes on the other

Jade snuff

I like snuff bottles a lot..

This is another in my collection that is carved out of jade..

It has strong Chinese influence as you can see from the auspicious Chinese bat carving on it..

Carved Malachite Box

Small but beautiful...

This malachite box is entirely hand carved from malachite and has a nice finish!

Rhodochrosite and calcite container

I seriously think that this container is meant for compact powder and other precious stuff...

It has a top made of Rhodochrosite and a base entirely carved from pink calcite.

Why pink??

Perhaps it will make your foundation more pink and contribute to a glowing complexion?

Looks simply too precious to use...

Agate Snuff Bottle

From Wikipedia:

Snuff bottles were used by the Chinese during the Qing Dynasty to contain powdered tobacco. Smoking tobacco was illegal during the Dynasty, but the use of snuff was allowed because the Chinese considered snuff to be a remedy for common illnesses such as colds, headaches and stomach disorders. Therefore, snuff was carried in a small bottle like other medicines. The snuff bottle is comparable to the snuff box used by Europeans.

Here I have a snuff bottle in my collection carved entirely of Red Agate:

Feast your eyes...