Chinese Bowl

I’m having hard time figuring out what is this bowl made of. It frees like some type of relatively soft stone and stencil like decoration. Not sure if it was carved out or applied or maybe molded powder stone?
Any thoughts?

 

Some kind of wax resist process... Nice

The roughness of it suggests newer, plus no wear on base?

 

What do you think that wax resist process would involve?

 

Drawing the design with something like an icing bag, and painting the rest - the wax burns off in firing.

 

The resist/wax has to be runny enough to draw with, but thick enough not to run

Piping bag, is what I meant.

 

I’m just not sure if the decoration was drawn and what’s the material. Definitely not paint. And why draw with resist wax?

 

How else would they apply a design over the entire surface like that?

Or if it is new there may be some photographic/digital/transfer metbod, which I don't know about.

 

The wax resists the glaze applied to the rest of the vessel - the wax just burns off, leaving the surface clean. It does look like alabaster or soft stone.

There may be some other material used, but wax is all I know. Same mechanical process as etching on metals.

This can be done in layers, as well.

 

So, it was possibly fired?
I’m thinking that the brown(which is actually white) was somehow eaten away and then stained/dyed.

 

This tjanting tool is what's used on batik textiles, it is metal to hold wax, so my idea for piping with a bag won't work with wax, but another material was applied for the same purpose.

When immersed in hot dye bath, the wax melts.

 

Since it looks like stone, not fired, but probably dipped in water hot enough to melt wax off. It could be etched, then color applied, I can't say without feeling the surface.

There are many combinations of adding and subtracting the effects, and different materials and tools.

Edit: I can see the etching or eating back of the brown areas.

 

We used to label our drafting tools by applying scotch tape, which we hand-cut our initials into; then etched the exposed metal or plastic with a photographic solution we used to "erase" mistakes on prints.

Kind of unlimited to material, method and etching materials.

 

The main idea is to create a protective barrier on the object - metal/textile/ceramic/marble - for a separate process, then completely remove or neutralize the barrier in some way.

 

Resist - Wikipedia

 

That's a much better explanation! But we worked our way out backwards from the materials.

That celadon vase used 2 stages of build over resist.

 

Thanks for all the info.
Here is my theory. The decoration was drawn with wax resist, likely not all manually but by the means of stencil, and then the untreated area was etched ( with acid or other way) and then the bowl was dyed with the resist still active.

 

I wasn't looking at the interior - I can see strips of transfer, but don't see that on the outside... I maybe you can?

The vessel is pretty translucent and has a kind of flaky waxiness to it. I can't fish up what it might be. It really could be much finer and thinner than I can see in a photo? The wear on the bottom? Extremely light?

Someone else may be able to help?

Who should we tag??

 

The decoration is done the same way on the exterior and the interior. The bowl is not thin and has normal heaviness.
I asked on the FB Chinese forum and one member suggested compressed molded stone powder. But nobody else picked up the topic.
The mark on the bottom is Daoguang. Of course not from the period but I wonder if they randomly put this reign mark or because similar art was done during that period.

 

Found similar but not much explanation.
https://www.ukauctioneers.com/aucti...s=24&sortBy=lotsort&lotView=grid&imagesOnly=N

 

Great find!

Maybe show the FB people? Too bad there's not more detailed information.

I can only give impressions on what I see, but seems like the Chinese afficiandos could clear it up further - at least whether it's a reproduction, or not... Do you believe it's old?

@Phaik Hooi
@gregsglass
@JayBee
@komokwa

In no particular order + sorry if I missed someone - I should take notes on who does what best, but I have to cobble it together, every time