Brush holder with flowers and poems

China

On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 219

This brush holder epitomizes the kind of molded gourd vessels made in the imperial workshop during the Qing dynasty. These ingeniously crafted containers were made by encasing a young gourd in a wooden mold composed of several sectional wood panels with engraved motifs. As the gourd grew, it filled the mold and took its shape, including the surface decoration.

Brush holder with flowers and poems, Molded gourd, black lacquer, China

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Brush holder with flowers and poems, Molded gourd, black lacquer, China
Brush holder with flowers and poems, Molded gourd, black lacquer, China
Brush holder with flowers and poems, Molded gourd, black lacquer, China
Brush holder with flowers and poems, Molded gourd, black lacquer, China

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