VMJ-242
An all bamboo set made for Hamleys of London, carved and coloured in China and packaged in a textured paper covered board box with five lift-out trays. The style of carving is somewhat naive but the ‘flower and season’ tiles are illustrated with the classically themed 4 scholarly pastimes (Playing the zither (Qin), Chinese Chess (Qi), Calligraphy (Shu) and Painting (Hua)) and possibly the 4 Treasures of the Study (brush, ink, ink stone and paper). All hand-carved and coloured, probably by young boys in the workshops of Shanghai. All of the 144 tiles have been engraved in a corner with a number or romanised letter for easy recognition.
The set has been well-used and 2 of the 4 replacement tiles are in use as a 1 Bing and a 8 Wan (see photos). The set also includes the original bone ming box with colourful wind indicators and a minibox containing 4 bone dice, together with a quantity of bamboo scoring sticks. The outer box has some damage and is now missing the front panel but it is still serviceable and has a pleasant patina with gold-coloured embossed titles.
While there were other producers in England selling sets of this type in the 1920’s, this set is unusual as it was made and packaged for London’s most exclusive toy and game store, making it more collectable.
An all bamboo set made for Hamleys of London, carved and coloured in China and packaged in a textured paper covered board box with five lift-out trays. The style of carving is somewhat naive but the ‘flower and season’ tiles are illustrated with the classically themed 4 scholarly pastimes (Playing the zither (Qin), Chinese Chess (Qi), Calligraphy (Shu) and Painting (Hua)) and possibly the 4 Treasures of the Study (brush, ink, ink stone and paper). All hand-carved and coloured, probably by young boys in the workshops of Shanghai. All of the 144 tiles have been engraved in a corner with a number or romanised letter for easy recognition.
The set has been well-used and 2 of the 4 replacement tiles are in use as a 1 Bing and a 8 Wan (see photos). The set also includes the original bone ming box with colourful wind indicators and a minibox containing 4 bone dice, together with a quantity of bamboo scoring sticks. The outer box has some damage and is now missing the front panel but it is still serviceable and has a pleasant patina with gold-coloured embossed titles.
While there were other producers in England selling sets of this type in the 1920’s, this set is unusual as it was made and packaged for London’s most exclusive toy and game store, making it more collectable.
An all bamboo set made for Hamleys of London, carved and coloured in China and packaged in a textured paper covered board box with five lift-out trays. The style of carving is somewhat naive but the ‘flower and season’ tiles are illustrated with the classically themed 4 scholarly pastimes (Playing the zither (Qin), Chinese Chess (Qi), Calligraphy (Shu) and Painting (Hua)) and possibly the 4 Treasures of the Study (brush, ink, ink stone and paper). All hand-carved and coloured, probably by young boys in the workshops of Shanghai. All of the 144 tiles have been engraved in a corner with a number or romanised letter for easy recognition.
The set has been well-used and 2 of the 4 replacement tiles are in use as a 1 Bing and a 8 Wan (see photos). The set also includes the original bone ming box with colourful wind indicators and a minibox containing 4 bone dice, together with a quantity of bamboo scoring sticks. The outer box has some damage and is now missing the front panel but it is still serviceable and has a pleasant patina with gold-coloured embossed titles.
While there were other producers in England selling sets of this type in the 1920’s, this set is unusual as it was made and packaged for London’s most exclusive toy and game store, making it more collectable.