There I've admitted my new addiction, pure and simple. There is just something amazing about finding pretty little things that someone is discarding or selling inexpensively that to you is a refound treasure.
Whether it is ceramic, china or crystal, whether it is natural wood, painted or lacquered...no mind if it is rusty and crusty! There are just items or furniture that jump out at me because they have nice lines, good bones or a bit of charm. Sometimes I imagine the tale they might have to tell....but that is a different blog.
So this week's feature in Pretty Little Things is my Geisha with Fan! Creamy white and so demur, at first I thought she was a lady head or wall pocket vase. But there was no way to hang her and she had this odd perfect hole on her chest. I almost missed her sitting there in someone's garage behind a clutter of items. But somehow the good stuff jumps out at you the second time through. $1? Sold!
Sitting 6 1/4 inches on my mantle, I researched and found two exactly like her on the internet. Dating from the 1950s or 60s, imbedded Made in China on the bottom, Geisha with Fan is most likely Blanc de Chine, according to the matching listing on Ruby Lane. This is a European term for a type of Chinese porcelain. According to Wikipedia Blanc de Chine comes from Dehua in the Fujian province of China, and is sometimes called Dehua porcelain. Manufacture of Blanc de Chine goes back to the Ming dynasty over 450 years ago. (Disclaimer: I am not an antique expert. I report merely what may be a probable explanation for a piece I find. Reproductions and fakes may be possible.)
I think the research part is kind of fun too. Maybe not as fun as the hunting, but really great when you find a good valuation.
ReplyDeleteThere is a blog called Late Night Coffee that has a post each Friday about nice "flips." Things you bought cheap and what it sold for. Always fun to hear the possibilities and get an idea of what to be looking for.