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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;Shangas, post: 128915, member: 360&quot;]Hi Moreotherstuff.</p><p><br /></p><p>In answer to your questions...</p><p><br /></p><p>There is definite wear inside the bottom of the mortar. There&#039;s several little dents and dings in the bottom of the bowl, and on the inside walls of the mortar (although moreso in the bottom, for obvious reasons).</p><p><br /></p><p>The inside of the mortar also has a slight (but noticeable) concavity to it. I suspect that this is MORE a result of nonstop pounding and smashing, rather than by design, which makes me think that this is VERY old. </p><p><br /></p><p>The bottom half of the pestle (which impacts with the mortar) has more wear than the top half.</p><p><br /></p><p>Originally the pestle looked like this:</p><p><br /></p><p>O=||==||==()==||==||=O</p><p><br /></p><p>where O are the circular heads of the pestle, and the || are decorative grooves cut into the shaft. The () indicates the ridge at the midpoint of the pestle.</p><p><br /></p><p>At one end of the pestle, the two grooves (both midway, and underneath the head) are clearly visible. At the other end, one set of grooves is almost gone (you can just see it if you hold the pestle right). To me, this speaks of years of pounding and crushing and the sides of the pestle striking the inside of the mortar.</p><p><br /></p><p>I agree that this certainly isn&#039;t anything &#039;special&#039; in the sense that anybody would&#039;ve bothered to look after it. Back then, a mortar and pestle was a mortar and pestle - it was used, day in, day out, for years, for crushing, grinding and smashing things up.</p><p><br /></p><p>The thing that gives me pause is the other issue you bring up - that similar styles were used for a LONG time. That&#039;s what makes me wonder.</p><p><br /></p><p>I&#039;ve seen several examples online, and right now, I&#039;m dating this to the turn of the 18th century (give or take ten years). I can see it being that old, given what I can examine with my own eyes, but I wouldn&#039;t be comfortable dating it any more precisely than that.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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