Posted 11 years ago
twoheads
(42 items)
Need help with this ginger jar, i am not sure what it is, i have been told its a ginger jar. under the lid it as a number 94, on the bottom it as a red G cannot read the rest. l am sure its quiet old.
ginger jar?? | ||
| Japanese Pottery1316 of 1450 |  |  |
I can't help much, other than to point you in a direction. For starters, when you're asking someone to identify an item for you, it really is important to provide pictures of excellent quality, taken in good lighting during the daytime. I almost didn't notice that it's in the shape of a lotus blossom because they're all closeups - I couldn't see the entire body or the outline of the item. Close ups are great, but try to remember that the pictures are our only access to the piece. A pic of the whole bottom is also important in many cases, because much more information can be collected from other aspects of the underside than just the mark.
Please don't think I'm trying to pick on you, I'm trying to help you avoid being ignored again next time, and hopefully to find the info you're looking for. Most people don't realize the things I'm telling you, so it's not directed "at" you. It's for everyone who reads it to benefit from.
Other valuable details that help are stating the texture, approximate size and weight, and adding a picture with a soda can or some other common item for a sizing comparison.
It may surprise you to learn that the numbers on a piece are usually no help at all (unless it's a date, but that's pretty rare and they aren't always the date it was made - they're sometimes in commemoration of a historic date). Numbers on ceramics represent a variety of things to each producer around the world. However, the position of the numbers on the piece, the way they look (Size, color, font or handwriting style), and how they are applied (incized, impressed, painted, stamped, under the glaze or over the glaze) can all be important clues, so a few photos of them is helpful (both closeups and wider pictures), while just stating what they are is never of any use in identification.
Another thing that most people don't think to provide is how you obtained the item. Was it your grandmother's who emgrated from another country? An estatesale for a collector of Japanese ceramics? An antique shop in CT? Thrift store in Des Moines? Gift from your friend for house sitting while she traveled to Europe? And who said it's a ginger jar? Did they tell you they weren't sure, or act as though they were certain? What else did they tell you about it? Just knowing the country of origin and approximate age if you have any idea would go a long way too.
To be truthful, I think the person who told you it's a ginger jar was either taking a guess (a lousy one at that) or they are pretending to know something they have no business talking about. Because that, my dear friend, is a sugar bowl. Have you seen fresh ginger in the grocery store? Those big, gnarly roots would never fit in a pot that size! If it were a ginger jar, it would be safe to assume it's Asian. But a sugar bowl could be from anywhere. When Asian-themed home decor was en vogue, "Chinoiserie" ceramics were produced all over the world.
I love solving a good mystery, and I'd like to sol e this one, if you would take some time to provide more pictures and info as described above. It may sound like I'm asking for a lot, but It's fair to say that in all likelihood I will invest much more of my time to get your answer than you will. But I'm up for it if you are!
Oh! PS - I love the piece. It is very pretty!
Hi Jenny, thanks for advice. New photos the best I can get at the movement the bowl dimensions are bowl only 135cm tall. With lid 230cm. Diameter is of the bowl is 185cm. When you rub my hands across I can feel the pattern, the top of the lid is a gold colored knob. Inside the lid is the letters red dot then 94, on the bottom of the bowl is a red letter G and may be a L there are japan ladies and a child one picture outside of them and inside a wood building. There is a gray golden color round the edge of the bowl at the top. I brought this from a charity shop ln england a few years ago Thanks for your help regards terry.