Posted 10 years ago
freiheit
(1224 items)
I found this bowl last week but it is in poor condition. The gilding on the rim is almost gone and there is a hairline crack in the back, however, it is hand painted and the image is almost perfect. Because it is unmarked, I am not too sure who made it but my guess is that it might ne Nippon.
I am thinking to use it as a practice piece and try to restore it. I figure for around $2 I don't have to feel too bad if I ruin it. What do you think?
Thanks for looking:)
can we see the bottom part please!!!
I will take a photo when I come home. I didn't bother because there was no mark :)
ok!! im thinking that this isn't Nippon , but I could be wrong .
http://nipponcollectorsclub.com/history.html
I am really not sure. I found one on line decorated almost identical to mine - but it had two pineapples. https://www.coololdstuffforsale.com/1823-1910s-1920s-antique-nippon-hand-painted-palms-and-pineapples-gilt-moriage-handled-bowl-hawaii-morimura-mark.php It was marked Nippon. Mine, of course, is not even close to that one! Then I found a site saying that there are unmarked pieces, however, the might have been part of a set and only some may have had the Nippon mark.
All tough I would like to find out if it is Nippon or not, the piece is worthless because of its condition. For that reason I thought it would be great to practice on it to see if I can make it "look good". Wouldn't that be fun to try???
I forgot to mention that you might be correct. Some patterns/decorations were done/copied by many manufacturers:)
Thanks a lot, PatSea and aghcollect:)
Thanks a lot, racer4four, PhilDavidAlexanderMorris, mikelv85, and vetraio50:)
Also agree with the others, this is probably Nippon. You'll often see pieces that are practically the same but for a few details.
As for restoration, NO! It's hard to match the gold and its aged patina. And repaired pieces are usually much less valued, especially since repairs are simply very visible. (Unless you are interested in trying to get the feel of what it takes to restore something and that's an art in itself.)
Best to learn to admire the beauty of the design (which is really in good shape; it would be a shame to call attention to the repair and away from the design). I have several pieces with worn gold but the gold is worn because those pieces were used and loved a hundred years ago; time flies, doesn't it?
Braider, thank you so much for your advice. I think I will follow it. I am not concerned about the value of the piece. I am not into selling; I am just into enjoying:) The painted design is pretty and in almost perfect shape. I will tolerate the loss of gold and cherish that fact that someone enjoyed that piece for around one hundred years. Thanks again!
Thanks, trunkman:)
Freiheit, when you mentioned repairing I got an awful image of the little old lady who decided she could "repair" Jesus's face on a mural. We all know how that turned out! But then, many people came to see exactly how awful it really was.
I have pieces in not-so-perfect condition but all I see is their beauty and that they were loved by the owners who maybe couldn't have afforded more than one piece.
I notice that the gold wear is not on the handles but on the side edges. Now isn't that odd? Perhaps they were trying to keep the handles looking good? Ah, the mysteries of life.
I know the story about the "repair". Don't worry, I wouldn't commit such a crime against art:)
I noticed the pattern of wear too. The funny thing is that I found myself handling the bowl at exactly the same spot the gold was gone! It might have been because the handles are not practical - you cannot get your fingers in the holes. They are just too small. I was also surprised to see that the decoration inside the bowl is almost impeccable. Someone must have used the bowl a lot but put items into the bowl very gently.
When I saw the bowl, I really appreciated the painted decoration and I wanted to buy it in spite of its condition. The problem is, my husband doesn't mind my "antique" collection as long as the pieces are in perfect condition, thus the idea of "restoration" :)