More Mystery Objects (2024 Edition)

It has been a while since I had a Mystery Item post, and the objects keep piling up. Here are five items for your consideration, with a sixth bonus item, that cover various aspects of common use. These are all Western items, many of them uniquely so, while others have their counterparts in different cultures.

As usual, write your guesses or identifications for any or all of the objects in the comments. Correct answers will not be visible until the reveal, but incorrect or somewhat-off answers will be posted, often with an additional clue.

 

#1    
This object is, for obvious reasons, dedicated to Debra She Who Seeks. This is about an inch (2.5cm) wide, and made of thin metal, although other materials were also common. I had to remove the writing on it, so as not to give away the answer.

#2  
In an attempt to add a little class to this blog, I decided to introduce this object. The present example is made of silver, although gold specimens are often encountered. It is about six inches long (15cm) when open and ready for use, as shown in the photo.

#3  
I had wanted one of these for a long time, and this summer, at a flea market in Mesopotamia, I found this example. This useful object is about three feet (one meter) long, and while they come in several styles, none of them are tiny.

 

#4
Technology has made this object (about three inches/eight cm long) somewhat obsolete, although it certainly can still be used, and was quite convenient not all that long ago. This one is even suspended on a neck chain to keep it handy.

#5 
This is one of the most protean of daily objects—there seemed to be a contest to see in how many different shapes these could be made. This one is small, about three inches (8cm) long, and made of metal, with of course its tiny wooden handle—although not all of them have such handles.

#6   Bonus Mystery Object
This object is rather large and heavy, about 10 inches (25cm) wide, and is the most complicated of today’s items. Its many parts combine to have a definite practical function, and the whole is still in working order.

 

I am looking forward to your identifications, guesses, and comments.


 

(All objects and photos of the same collection of the author.)

Five Western Mystery Objects Revealed

This Mystery Object post has created quite a discussion. All in all there were 39 correct answers given. Congratulations to Rosemary, NYChatham, and Tundra Bunny, who tied for first place with four correct identifications each. A special shout-out goes to Mariette, who was the only one who guessed the apparently difficult #3.

Here are the answers:

#1 Button Hook

Mariette, Debra, Michelle, Jack, NYChatham, Rosemary, Sue Bursztynski, The Contessa, Travel, Mrs. D., Pipistrello, and Tundra Bunny all got this one correct.

In earlier times there were many buttons that held clothes together. Shoes and gloves especially were held on by rows of buttons. The button hook made the job easier. You put the hook through the buttonhole, grabbed onto the shank of the button, then pulled the button through the hole.

I have tried this and it is very easy to become skilled with a button hook. The tiny example pictured here was likely meant for gloves—the larger, tighter buttons on shoes would probably break it.

Here is a photo of a few more buttonhooks from dresser sets that my sister was kind enough to send to me:

#2 Hair Receiver

This direct top view shows the center hole more clearly.

NYChatham, Rosemary, Kirk, The Contessa, Mrs. D., Pipistrello, and Tundra Bunny all identified this object.

Hair receivers once adorned virtually every lady’s dresser top. Women would brush their long hair, then pull the hair out of the brush and push it through the hole in the lid. When the receiver was full, they could take the accumulated hair out and make a small cushion called a rat, which was used to supply extra volume and height for elaborate hairstyles.

There are many hair receivers (such as this one) made out of celluloid, an early kind of plastic. A great many were also ceramic, and some were even made of sterling silver. Here is an unusual square ceramic one with a square hole, again courtesy of my sister:

#3 Corn Husker

This was correctly identified only by Mariette.

This item was dedicated to Kirk, whose blog Shadow of a Doubt recently honored Carl Sandburg. Kirk in that post mentioned Sandburg’s 1919 award-winning poem collection called Cornhuskers.

When you buy fresh corn (maize) the ears are covered with leaves or husks which must be shucked off. This is not so bad if you are boiling a few ears for dinner, but if you have an entire field of corn to husk, especially when it has been left to dry in the field for animal feed, these tough husks would rip your hands to shreds. Enter the corn husker, of which there are many varieties around.

The leather strap went around your hand, and the point could be used to puncture and start splitting apart the husk, which was then easily removed by hand. Farm workers were incredibly fast with this tool, and indeed corn husking competitions were common in earlier decades, and there is some footage of these on Youtube.

I didn’t plan for this one to be so hard. Corn huskers can easily be found at flea markets or online. Here is a group that I bought together (the one used in the quiz was purchased separately). You can see some of the many forms these came in:

Proof that Necessity is the mother of Invention

#4 Jug Cover

Mariette, Debra, Michelle, Hels, NYChatham, Rosemary, slf, Jenny Woolf, Travel, Bazza, Pipistrello, Loree, and Tundra Bunny all knew what this was.

This is an object that could still be useful. When flies are numerous, cream jugs, drinks, and various dishes of food could all be protected by these crocheted (or knitted or whatever) covers, whose edges were weighted down with glass beads so they would not fall off easily.

The one illustrated above has a kookaburra in the center, indicating that it came from Australia, as Hels explained. In fact, these are found all over, but there does seem to be a predominance of them in Australia, where my examples came from.

I am adding a picture of a plainer one, an intricate one topped with a teacup, and a view of the whole group to indicate the variety these can be found in.

#5 Collapsible Cup

I admit this one was a bit of a perspective trick, as most of you have probably seen these. However, Debra, NYChatham, Rosemary, The Contessa, Travel, and Tundra Bunny all identified it correctly.

These compact cups were used to carry on one’s person, in traveling bar kits, and as camping equipment. They must have been a blessing for fastidious people in the days when drinking fountains or other sources a water had a single public tin cup for everyone to use.

The side view immediately identifies both its use and its telescoping mechanism. This one is very small, about the size of a shot glass.

The top view would have given it away, with its inscription Vest Pocket Cup in pleasantly old-fashioned writing.

The rivet on the bottom is a little mysterious. It doesn’t indent too much on the bottom, but given the size of the cup, I am guessing this might have been part of a traveling bar set, and the cup snapped into place.

 

Thank you to all who participated in this quiz. The answers and guesses were very well thought out, especially for items that were unfamiliar. Tabulating all the answers was quite a job, so if I made a mistake, let me know and I will fix it.

Please don’t worry that I will run out of mystery objects, either Asian or Western. In fact, when my sister was sending me the photos, she sent one of an item she had just obtained, that I believe will make the corn husker look like child’s play!

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All of the objects and photos shown here are property of the author, except as noted. The group photos of the corn huskers and the jug covers (except for the kookaburra, again, courtesy of my sister) were the original listing photos when I purchased them.

Mystery Objects -- Western Edition

In the past all of my Mystery posts have been of Chinese items, which has made many of them difficult to guess. Other cultures might use the same items, but they can be hard to recognize when buried in carvings of dragons and the like.

Since turnabout is fair play, I have decided to do a mystery post of Western objects, but this time the rules will be a little different. I am afraid that some of these will prove too easy, so I am including five mystery objects in this post. Each correct guess will count, and the grand winner will be the one with the most points.

#1

#1  This is the epitome of antique or bygone objects, once found in literally every Western home. While the handles could be made of any material, the business end was usually steel, and the entire object ranges from about three to six inches long. This diminutive example, made from bone and steel, is less than three inches long, but it works fine.

#2

 

#2  These items for a long time were nearly as ubiquitous as the above object. They could be made of many materials, especially china, but this example is made from celluloid. They seem to average about five inches across.

#3 top

#3 bottom

#3  This article is perhaps more of an American specialty. Many designs and varieties exist. This one is made from steel and leather, and is almost five inches long.

#4

#4  These crocheted pieces bordered with glass beads seem so handy that I am surprised they are not in more general use, although possibly in some places they still are. They are typically six to eight inches across.

#5

 

#5  These frankly are still available, although their greatest popularity was a while ago. Often about one to three inches in diameter, this small-sized example is made of nickel-plated brass.

If you can identify any or all of these objects, please do so in the comments. The usual mystery object rules will apply. Comment moderation will be turned on. Incorrect answers will be printed immediately, so people can guess again with more clues. Correct answers will be withheld until the Reveal post in about a week.

Good Luck!
 

Mystery Object Revealed—Chinese Calligraphy Guides or Frames

This mystery object was used in the production of calligraphy. To keep the columns of characters straight, sometimes guide lines were lightly inscribed. But for those who preferred a more freehand look, these brass frames placed on the paper or silk ensured proper proportions and alignment of the characters as they were painted. They are thus among the many items that belonged in the scholar’s studio.

This was probably a difficult object to guess for those who don’t do drafting or calligraphy, but two readers used the clues and very much narrowed down the answer. Bazza directly mentioned calligraphy, and Rosemary’s mention of a template is so tantalizingly close that I have counted it as a winner.

The top example is made of cast brass, lending it some weight so that it could also be used as a paperweight, and so that it would not slip easily. The top side has a floral decoration, while the bottom is polished to lie flat against the work as it was produced.

The smooth and polished underside of the frame show that it was used directly on the paper or silk

These frames are still very much used by those who practice Chinese calligraphy. The following screen shot take from a Google search shows them in use, and that they often come in sets of varying sizes. Notice that some have rulers stamped along the edges, as a further aid in getting the proper proportions to the characters.

These frames also helped to align the placement of the seal-stamps that were used by Chinese artists and collectors. Painters and calligraphers often sign their own productions with red seals, and collectors of fine paintings and calligraphy may add their own seals, even to famous paintings of important cultural value.

Over time, the accumulation of the stamps adds a characteristic look to Chinese paintings, a visible record of appreciation over many generations. The seals also provide a provenance, and the seal of a famous collector or emperor adds to the cachet of a work.

Zhao Meng-fu (1254-1322) was a revered Yuan Dynasty painter. His Autumn Colors on the Qiao and Hua Mountains is considered one of the greatest masterpieces of Chinese paintings. Notice how many red seals are on the painting, and how carefully they are placed. I have been fortunate to see this painting in person, and the effect of Zhao Meng-fu’s genius is truly astounding.

This famous painting has accumulated many seals over the last 700 years. To see its beautiful detail, visit the original photo in Wikipedia, then click to enlarge.

Detail of above. Imagine the nerve it must take to add one of these seals. What if you botched it and got a red smudge on this treasure?

The next calligraphy alignment frame sports a meander or Greek key design. It could use some cleaning up, but I am afraid that removing the paper tag would create a “clean” spot on the frame, and I certainly do not want to polish it. Usually I remove tags immediately, but this is an old one that had been on there a long time, and would not come off easily. The same is true of the paper tags on the bottom of the floral one.
 

My final calligraphy frame is less fancy, although it is still decorated. It has engraved trophies in the middle of the long sides, interspersed with punchwork bats and corner elements. It is interesting how the corner designs closely echo the pattern of the bats. Perhaps not as heavy as the other two, it is still somewhat substantial, as one would not want these to move easily once one started writing!

When I was learning Chinese writing, I used specially ruled paper to keep the characters somewhat in order. In great calligraphy, the apparent freedom of the artist's brush is especially admired, and although some artists use genuine freehand, who knows how many rely on mechanical aids like these decorated brass frames.

(All original objects and photos property of the author. Zhao Meng-fu painting is from Wikipedia, and the Google search is of course from Google.)

Chinese Brass Mystery Object

I apologize for having been remiss in posting, and in addition it’s been a very long time since I have done a mystery object.

So many objects were beautifully made in the past, but today their identification is often obscure. If you know or can guess what this is, let me know in the comments. I will turn on comment moderation for this post, so if you guess correctly I will withhold your winning comment until the big reveal next week, in order to give others a chance.

This utilitarian object is made from brass, and is about five or six inches (c. 13 cm) on the long side, although these came in different sizes.

Perhaps the exact use for this object was more common in Asian countries, at least those with Chinese-inspired cultures, but somewhat similar objects were made elsewhere. They are still made today, both the Asian and non-Asian types.

Good Luck. I look forward to seeing your responses.


(All photos and original objects property of the author.)

Ultimate Mystery Objects: Chinese Ornate Bronze Grilles

I have written about many Chinese mystery objects, with the answer revealed in the following post. However, some of my Chinese items are “ultimate” mystery objects—I cannot supply the answer because no one has any idea of what they are.

These may be common objects, and after publishing I will see them everywhere, but the dealers I have bought them from could supply no information, no one else seemed to know, and intensive internet searches turned up nothing. Perhaps the public scrutiny involved in posting them will yield a clue, and the mystery will at length be solved.

Today’s example is a set of three round bronze grilles, each about seven inches (18 centimeters) in diameter. They are of the same basic pattern, but have increasing complexity of ornamentation.

The simplest design, with added boss to give the center some interest.

The first one has the simplest design. There is an outer ring, with four brackets that bend down to support the inner design. This consists of two more concentric rings. The four outer brackets are split into double volutes or spirals, filling part of the open space. The middle ring has four bars soldered to it in a cross pattern, which support the inner ring. A large, ribbed boss is at the very center.

Additional volutes in the center start to fill in the design.

The second grille starts out like the first. However, the four struts that support the inner circle do not meet in the center, but like the outer struts are split into double volutes. Since these eight spirals occupy the smaller inner spaces, they immediately give a much more ornate and dense effect.

On top of what is left of the inner supports there is attached a cross-like structure with banded ends that is split in the middle to form a hollow square space (detail enlarged in top photo). With the inner circle, the whole effect is of a large coin pattern, similar to those on the pewter offering stand. The round cash coin with a square hole in the center is a very auspicious Chinese design.

The most elaborate design, with added bats.

The final grille is the most elaborate. It is built like the second one, but this time on the flat part of the supports emanating from the middle circle are riveted four bronze bats. These bats are well made, of an openwork design with soldered-on three-dimensional bodies and finely engraved wings. Bats, of course, are another Chinese lucky symbol.

The center coin design is altered slightly. The square hole is larger, and there is no banding on the crosspieces that create the hole. The effect is simpler and more open, perhaps intentionally to avoid a too-crowded look with the addition of the bats.

Detail of the workmanship on the bat appliques.

Their open pattern suggests grilles of some kind, for ventilation, heat, or incense, but I have not seen similar grilles in situ. The lucky symbols incorporated are very common to many Chinese objects, and would not indicate any particular purpose. The supports split into spirals are often seen in Chinese metalwork, but I imagine this technique is found in most societies. 

These three grilles somewhat resemble trivets, but the step-down in each one suggests that they were designed to fit into openings. The fact that there are no mounting holes for nails indicates that they likely were set into a flat surface, instead of being mounted vertically into walls. Various stoves, large incense burners, and furnaces for burning spirit money might have had such flat vents built into them. Some incense and money burners are very large, often built of masonry.

However, the boss on the simple design indicates that nothing (such as a kettle) was meant to be placed on these, and the bronze is too thin to support the heat from a stove or furnace, although if not too near the flames, these uses are still possible.

My best guess is that these were meant for a large temple-size incense burner, although that still leaves the mystery of the three designs. They could have been meant for different types of incense (or denominations of spirit money), or they could have been arranged in a way that made visual sense.

I have three of these, but of course the original number could have been much greater—they could even have encircled a building or large object with rows of increasingly complex designs. Conversely, these could have been sample products, to allow the consumer to choose the most pleasing design.

I imagine that these would look good mounted against a white wall, to highlight the designs. If you have seen similar objects before, or can guess a more probable use for them, please let me know in the comments. Also let me know which one is your favorite: the simple model, the intermediate design with the extra volutes, or the most complex design with the bats.

 

All photographs and original objects property of the author.