Featured Japanese Meiji Lacquered Fubako Box Painted with Butterflies

Thank you Raver I was a bit nervous as I thought this might not be your type of box(I always have this kind of worry when I desperately want show it to people, but they might not see the same), but happy to hear you like it so much!

But I have to say, no, the whole box survives you can see the base on the third pic-decorated with smaller butterflies which are only visible when you open it! Here’s a better pic of its front.
The only problem that may affect it further is the old glue, but I mentioned earlier that a restorer advised me to leave it if I don’t have experience in putting it up properly…after all it’s an expensive piece to practice with but the glue still stays for now and I will keep an eye on it.

And, lovely opals as well! I know some artists also do opal inlays in lacquerware today. What do you do with them?

 

Your Opal horde looks lovely. I can only allow myself a few small bits but they're always beautiful to look at endlessly.

 

Thank you. My opal horde has grown since that pic was taken, I found a strange economic twist in the opal market that even today I don't really understand why it exists. To cut a very long one short it's Australian opals Vs Ethiopian opals, both have equally brilliant opals but Ethiopian opals sell for a fraction of the cost, why? because the Australian opal industry have discredited Ethiopian opals with lies, a little independent research shows there are differences but 99% of the BS the Australian opal industry come out with has been widely debunked. So for that reason I'm cutting (carving) Ethiopian opals from rough which makes them even less expensive, if those opals were Australian I would have had to sell my house to buy them whereas these cost me less than a half decent Anglo Indian box.

I keep them ATM, my intention is to set them one day in jewellery. I don't think the glue will damage to box, if water dissolves the glue then there's a good chance it's hide glue, over decades this will become powdery but can be easily rehydrated with water. I don't know your intention? is it to remove the glue or to re stick the damage that the glue once stuck? If it's the second then a little water and heat should re melt the glue but it's tricky because the box is lacquered, I would leave well alone in both cases. BTW you show it off, it's a piece that we can all enjoy

 

And you should post what you do with them here one day!

As to the glue, yes my initial thought was to remove the old glue and re-glue with better urushi lacquer, if that’s a potential risk being left there. But if you said you were okay with it, then it’s reassuring, cuz I find you a bit more ‘radical’ than me when comes to restoring antique lol thought you couldn’t stand that trace of glue. But if you think it’s fine, then it should be!

 

I was trying to fit a cord as shown in the pic to my box lol, I bought two for kimono and find they are way too big, can’t even go through that metal ring

 

Gorgeous opals, raver!

There is also the factor of cost in a high wage country like Australia and a low wage country like Ethiopia.

 

The problem with opal is not many people understand it enough to make an informed decision and the Australian opal industry know this. Should a miner be able to pull $100,000 a week from a mine? Should a cutter inflate a stones value by 20x often going from $500 to $5000-$10,000 a ct just for 1hr's work? by the time it's in a retail market the stone has risen in price way beyond it's true worth IMHO.
The Australian opal market is bonkers, 95% of the worlds opals come from Australia so not rare. Their crystal opal is very rare whereas Ethiopian crystal opal is the standard.
Take this Ethiopian crystal opal I carved, it's full crystal and very bright, @17.2 ct's (massive for an Aus opal) it's more robust than a Aus opal, it wont dry, craze or crack over time because it's hydrophane (can absorb water) but the Aus opal industry condemn Ethiopian opal for this very reason, it's true when it gets soaked in water it goes transparent but after a few days it will return to how it was before. The price of Aus opal is so over inflated and the price of Ethiopian opal is so under valued, I don't think the Aus opal bubble will last for much longer. You are right, one country will work for a few dollars a day whereas the other will lobby law makers to make it almost impossible for any new miners to start and keep their lucrative/greedy monopoly, I feel sorry for all the unwary Aus opal buyers who are enticed in by slogans like "investment opals"

 

& the Aussi miners , have tv shows !!!!

 

If you want to go down a rabbit hole, look at faceted opals. It's do-able if you're crazy enough.

 

had this opal pendant for like three years and it has completely gone yellow… not sure how to bring it back

 

What does it mean when an opal turns yellow?

Unfortunately, Ethiopian opals tend to turn yellow, over time, when they come into contact with moisture, or humidity. It is normal. They aren't bad quality, it's totally natural.

I can not verify this...... or this either...

How do you restore opal color?

WHAT TO DO IF OPAL HAS LOST ITS COLOR?

1. Pour distilled water into a container. ...
2. Then put the opal for 5-10 minutes in this container or on top of a cloth or gauze. ...
3. After that, you should take the opal out, wipe it gently with a soft cloth and leave it to dry in the open air in the shade avoiding direct sunlight.

BUT>>>>>>>>>>>>>

If their water dries out they can lose their colour or crack. Never soak your opals in water to restore them either, this will not work but will cause water to seep into the layers of silica spheres and cause misting/fogging and discoloration (brownish-yellow).


So basically ............ I haven't got a clue ..... let's see who does ?????

@808 raver ..?

 

I bought some faceted opals in auction but I don't have the lapidary machine to do it. My inspiration was the freeform stones cut for maharajas that inspired Cartier's tutti frutti designs ect. Also, freeform opals tend to catch light in a way that cabochon and faceted stones don't, it's hard to explain and I can't upload a video to show.

 

TBH there are a lot of things that can cause any opal to suffer damage, including chemicals, perfume & sunlight, impurities in the stone ie iron oxide ect, creams. Opals can dry out or get too wet, an opal isn't a crystal structure like diamond so some are brittle and some scratch easily. My Wife gave my mother-in-law a opal for her 70th, we gave her a long list of things not to do, her sister inherited a Aus black opal in a ring, that has suffered a lot of damage because it's been treated so badly. I really don't know what has caused the damage in the first place, I'll include a video of what not to do in a hope you can say this is what caused it to go brown and then maybe we can find an answer

 

I have no ideas either there’s one time it got wet and turned transparent and yellow, but recovered after left to dry in air for a few days. Then it’s been kept in a shelf with glass doors, but there are a few bottles of perfume nearby, that might also be a factor… anyway, thanks for the video!

 

The truth is I really don't know what caused the yellowing in the first place, this statement "Unfortunately, Ethiopian opals tend to turn yellow, over time" is totally wrong and clearly one of the Aus opal industry's lies to prevent far better opals from gaining value.

 

I can't see it's because it got wet, 97% of opals are cut using water. I suspect it's an Ethiopian opal? Was it expensive? the reason I ask because all opal has good and bad grades. Is the back of the setting open? Is that also yellow?

 

Yes, sold to me as Ethiopian at £68 including the sterling silver setting, open back and the back seems less yellow I’d say

 

At £68 including setting isn't a lot of money for an opal but I don't think the yellowing is down to poor quality opal given the back is less yellow, I think you may have sprayed something on it it didn't like? I did try and research it but ATM I can't find anything as yet.

 

It’s fine it will still just sit there

 

I just did some research and I want to correct that the inlays are not abalone, but great green turban shell backed by black lacquer…not sure if this shell is used in European antiques too? They are very popular in East Asian Luodian/Raden art.