eBay

druther1501 · ‎11-10-2018

Hello, I was hoping someone might be able to tell me what this is. It's very heavy and I think it's marble, but I'm not sure.

It's 11 1/2 inches long, 10 inches wide and 2 1/2 inches tall. The circular depression is about 1 inch deep. It's too shallow to be called a bowl. It doesn't look like an ash tray or a mortar. The top is smooth and polished while the underside is rough. It has green felt on the bottom.

I got it at an estate sale and believe it's at least 60 years old. Can anyone please tell me what it is or what it was used for? Thanks so much!

maxine*j · ‎11-10-2018

@argon38 wrote:

Onyx for the material?

That's likely. I'm not good at telling the two (onyx, marble) apart in photographs, but the unpolished part does look more like onyx that marble.

little.font.lord.leroy · ‎11-10-2018

I think it was intended as an ashtray. But with fewer smokers out there, it's good that it is missing the indents.

I would sell it as a "key drop" to put by the front door and take a photo of it with a key ring and some change in it. It could also be used as a Valet Dish or Valet Tray for a man's dresser to empty his pockets at night. Would make a nice Christmas gift.

debora_34_ · ‎11-10-2018

That's an ashtray! And isn't it lovely that we now live in a time when it isn't automatically identified as such? Such a nasty habit and I remember well when non-smokers had no rights. Smoke everywhere (planes, movie theaters, etc.) and never an apology for such.

Debora

lacemaker3 · ‎11-10-2018

@maxine*j wrote:
@lacemaker3 wrote:
A chopping bowl for use with a mezzaluna (half-moon) knife?

An interesting idea, but I don't think so. Marble is a poor chopping surface, and hard on the blade. The asymmetrical shape would make it unstable for chopping, and the unfinished bottom and sides would be hard to keep clean in a kitchen. (The felt would be impossible to keep clean, although I know it could have been added as an afterthought.) Just my two cents.

Excellent points. I thought about marble or stone being hard on the blade, but they make cutting boards out of it anyway, so who knows. Can't argue with the point about it being unstable.

I would go along with it being an ashtray originally. Also, would be very attractive on a coffee table with an apple in it. Or a couple of pine cones in the winter time. Or keys in the front hall.

argon38 · ‎11-10-2018

@maxine*j wrote:
@argon38 wrote:

Onyx for the material?
That's likely. I'm not good at telling the two (onyx, marble) apart in photographs, but the unpolished part does look more like onyx that marble.

I just noticed that the original post mentions that it is very heavy, so perhaps it could be marble after all (apparently onyx is lighter) - I don't suppose it matters, anyway. One thing I would suggest, though, is that the OP should maybe give the brown staining a wipe with a damp cloth. It might just be a surface stain, and it would look nicer with it gone.

little.font.lord.leroy · ‎11-11-2018

It is Marble. I believe it's Italian, I suppose you could go to one of those stone counter top dealers and they may be able to identify it. The coloring and streaking can be a kind of fingerprint.

There are two types of grey streaked marble like this that I know of, Calacatta from India and Carrara Marble from Italy, which I believe this is. Though marketed as "Bianco" (white) it isn't the same quality as the pure white used for the Statue of David and Pieta.

There may be similar marble found in Turkey or China or Vermont?, but this looks like grey streaked Carrara to me.

The brown staining is also consistent with this type of Cararra, as they sometimes run into fine streaks of iron. This is a problem with the fine white Cararra (sold only to artists who have to file an application) as an iron streak hidden deep inside a block can ruin or vastly alter an Artist's composition.

maxine*j · ‎11-11-2018

In the years when I wanted to have such things identified, I was lucky enough to live close to a friendly monument mason (tombstone maker) who would identify marble, granite, basalt, or onyx, with an informed opinion as to its source and quality. He was also a good conversationalist, a pleasure to watch at work, and accepted payment in the form of the occasional bottle of straight rye.

argon38 · ‎11-11-2018

@maxine*j wrote:
In the years when I wanted to have such things identified, I was lucky enough to live close to a friendly monument mason (tombstone maker)

Friendly tombstone makers are always a delight to have around.