Featured 1870s Sterling Silver Barrel-form Pounce Pot!

Heh, my first Siamese was Mai Hai Thai, named for her intense interest in our teenage herbal high-jinks...

~Cheryl

 

This blog post on "Paper, Ink, Sand, Pounce", is interesting, with the author doing some experimental research: https://seattleauthor.com/2016/07/06/paper-ink-sand-pounce/

Years ago, a friend asked for help in finding proper blotting sand, as former manager of a large art & drafting supply, 'Pounce' was a familiar product to me, and certainly knew of blotting sand, but it ended up sending me into a rabbit-hole of research into both materials...

~Cheryl

 

Love it. You're right. She would have played with the sand; spread it all over the paper and then to the floor. Kiko was my second most favorite creature of all time. As soon as she saw me she started to purr so loudly. Actually the two in my avatar, Cosette and Riley, step on my laptop keyboard, at least 40 times a day. That counts are a form of modern feather don't you think? The best ones, like your Ki-Ki, remain in your heart forever.

 

Here are price results from Live Auctioneers. So they have them for auction every once in a while. There was one sold in March 2021. It's free to join, and they will notify you if something you are interested in comes up for auction.
Search "silver pounce pot" (liveauctioneers.com)

 

Unfortunately, the majority of pieces described by sellers as 'silver pounce pots' are shakers - here are some typical pounce pots/sanders, dating from 1749 to 1891, on their original stands (tried to give an assortment of shapes):


https://emuseum.history.org/objects...r;jsessionid=30FA2F5C64FF7410A8AE333B4B43F482



https://www.paulbennettonline.com/s...ilver-inkstand-cordoba-1800-mateo-mtz-moreno/



https://www.bonhams.com/auctions/20532/lot/1055/



https://www.bidsquare.com/online-au...nal-form-with-an-inkwell-pounce-pot-qu-715977




~Cheryl

 

Yeah. This is why trying to find one is so goddamn hard. Because most people have never even heard of them, nobody knows what they look like.

I've seen a lot of those silver barrel thingies you showed - being advertised as pounce pots. Not just mine. I stumbled across at least two more while researching them. It's really confusing.

 

Go to eBay and type in "SILVER POUNCE POT"

and all the listings - almost all of them, will say something like "Sterling silver pounce pot / pepper pot"

Because they have no idea which one it is.

Here's one. Is it a pounce pot? I dunno! It looks more like a pepper shaker to me...

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/194060435334?hash=item2d2ee73f86:g:mTwAAOSwMMdggtc4

I was more inclined to think that the barrel one was a pounce pot, because 1. the holes are larger, and
2. the rim would stop the sand from pouring over the edge, because I know that the sand is meant to be poured back inside.

That other one up there? ^^^^ I dunno.

 

The ONE TIME I was able to BUY an actual silver desk-set inkstand with pounce pot (from a fellow dealer who sells almost exclusively - antique silverware), he wanted a heart-stopping price for it.