A rare bole-shaped wooden brushpot

The brushpot is carved in the form of the bole of tree, with asymmetric bulges and turns rising to a narrow flat rim of irregular outline. The exterior is undecorated except for the unusual attractive natural grain with curling and twisting bands of alternating dark and light wood, onto which a clear varnish has been applied. The base is formed from a separate piece of darker wood.

Provenance:
Melplash Court, Dorset
Spink and Sons Ltd

A brushpot of the same material, also unidentified, is illustrated by Jenyns and Watson, Chinese Art, Volume2, no. 211, p.276. 

Dimensions: Height: 16 cm, 6 inches

Date: Early Qing dynasty (1644-1911)

Stock No. 1688

Price: On Request