Lots of pictures

[DJH]

Yes Lady Arowana there' something fishy about that mould. It was given me by a friend who had bought it from somewhere where they described it for butterand I don't have the heart to tell him.

 

[Zebra]

What an interesting fireplace DJH.

 

[DJH]

Thanks. I might finish one day!! On the left behind the top of the crane is a salt niche I put in although some say they were for baccy.

 

[LadyArowana]

Yes Lady Arowana there' something fishy about that mould. It was given me by a friend who had bought it from somewhere where they described it for butterand I don't have the heart to tell him.

As they say, it's the thought that counts, and friends are precious, so don't worry, I won't tell him, it can be our little secret :lol: I was actually hoping that you would say these were well known in Ireland as Victorian butter moulds and I could be amazed at the cultural convergence. Then make up a theory of how they were taken to the Orient by early traders and used there for a different purpose. Migration of design and ideas etc is something that I'm very interested in, principally in regard to things Japanese, but also in general.

 

[Gareth Hughes]

Yes Lady Arowana there' something fishy about that mould. It was given me by a friend who had bought it from somewhere where they described it for butterand I don't have the heart to tell him.

As they say, it's the thought that counts, and friends are precious, so don't worry, I won't tell him, it can be our little secret :lol: I was actually hoping that you would say these were well known in Ireland as Victorian butter moulds and I could be amazed at the cultural convergence. Then make up a theory of how they were taken to the Orient by early traders and used there for a different purpose. Migration of design and ideas etc is something that I'm very interested in, principally in regard to things Japanese, but also in general.

Well - Chinese-Irish trade (if that's what it was) has thrown up similar mysteries in the past:
http://hilgemeier.gmxhome.de/mystery/chinseal.htm

 

[LadyArowana]

Well - Chinese-Irish trade (if that's what it was) has thrown up similar mysteries in the past:
http://hilgemeier.gmxhome.de/mystery/chinseal.htm

Interesting, particularly the point made about these possibly being little gifts given away by a tea exporter. We have several of these seals ( some with elephants on of course ), and they are and were typically made of stone, often "shou shan stone", which even though it is relatively soft would be much more difficult to work with than clay so these would be cheaper. Our modern ones were bought as blanks ( nothing carved underneath ) and then we chose what they would print. Sadly the person who was really talented at that task returned to Beijing and the tourist grade work generally available is awful.