Bizen kensui (eBay)

[Drax]

Did anybody see this bizen kensui that was on eBay recently?

I'll briefly describe it, since the link won't last forever. It's a typical bizen pot (cylinder bottom), about 5" diameter and 3" tall. Very rough and rocky (grayish green) on one side). It has a large repair that covers about half of the rim (the upper half of one half of the side). The repair has a glossy underbase and then "golden rainbows" (1 thick main line and 2 thinner inner lines) that form a scale-like pattern over the glossy repair. The golden color has turned brown-red in some spots, particularly near the rim and interior on one side, but not everywhere.

The auctioneer claimed the piece was 250 years old, and the piece sold for about $350.

So, question time, of which I have two main questions.

First, any thoughts on the age of the piece? I am very unfamiliar with old bizen. Sure, it "looks" old, but sometimes even new bizen looks old. Does anybody know how to evaluate a piece like this one (or bizen in general)?

Second, I have not seen a repair quite like this one before. I'm assuming that the surface of the repair was quite large, which is why the repairer went with the pattern (vice making the whole thing gold)? Has anybody seen repairs of this type before (vice the "golden repairs" that tend to highlight only the cracks, or small missing pieces)?

Thanks!

[AdamMY]

I have a rule I generally go by on ebay. If it's sold by Katsuguri do not trust the age statement While I am personally not an expert at dating pieces I have caught him in some small mistakes, such as claiming a piece is a certain age, and when looking at the artists bio, the artist had yet to start producing ceramics at that time.

[Chip]

+1, take ages with a grain of salt from this seller.

Another rule I have for this ebay seller. If I like it, fine ... that is usually what I will base purchasing interest upon, not an advertised age that often seems ... arbitrary or best guess. I simply never base purchasing interest or how much I will pay upon the advertised age.

Based on all this, I would not have had any purchasing interest in this item.

Having said all that, I check out their auctions, you never know what they might offer.

[Drax]

I agree about the cautions on age claims from this vendor, but barring that, any ideas or resources on older bizen...? I realize that dating pottery by eye (and pictures, no less) is quite the art, but I'm curious how one might try to estimate an age for this style of pottery without any other info (that, and I'm also curious about the style of the repair).

[Tead Off]

I agree about the cautions on age claims from this vendor, but barring that, any ideas or resources on older bizen...? I realize that dating pottery by eye (and pictures, no less) is quite the art, but I'm curious how one might try to estimate an age for this style of pottery without any other info (that, and I'm also curious about the style of the repair).

The best way to learn is through looking at examples published in art books. When you are familiar enough with design, clay, period, you can then begin perusing auction catalogs where this type of pottery is sold to get a feeling of price. This still will not guarantee that you will not make errors but it's a beginning.

[Drax]

I was surfing around today and found a site for a guy who does repair work (on a variety of materials).

At the bottom of this link, he has some pictures of some 'wider' repairs, and I thought it was interesting that he used a similar drawing method (the overlapping rainbows/scales) to the one on this bizen pot I had originally asked about.

In any case, I suppose that this pattern might be a traditional one, then. Either that, or this guy was the one who did the repair of the bizen kensui...!

[Drax]

Although on further observation, the guy I've just linked has a much, much better technique (quality of repair, and fineness and consistency of the line) than the bizen kensui I originally pointed out.

[debunix]

That looks like the work of someone I might trust with my shibo, if I can't finish it myself.

[Drax]

I noticed on his links page that he linked to Magokorodo... so they might know each other (which is always a good sign -- and might make it easier to contact him if he doesn't speak English).

[David R.]

I noticed on his links page that he linked to Magokorodo... so they might know each other (which is always a good sign -- and might make it easier to contact him if he doesn't speak English).

Please see my post here. This guy works very well. You may contact Hidehisa from Magokorodo. He will take care of the deal for you.

[Drax]

I noticed on his links page that he linked to Magokorodo... so they might know each other (which is always a good sign -- and might make it easier to contact him if he doesn't speak English).

Please see my post here. This guy works very well. You may contact Hidehisa from Magokorodo. He will take care of the deal for you.

Oh, they're the same guy? That's great! I wasn't sure how well known he was (even though his work is clearly amazing)... partly because I found his website on about page 8 of my search topic... thought he might have been a little obscure.