Material: Wood, lacquer
Style: Burma
Size: Height 47 cm, Diameter 30 cm
Order Number: MHSABC1

Cooking oil was stored in large, square, heavily lacquered woven containers called hsi-o. It has a square base for sturdiness and small lugs through which string may be threaded so that it can be carried on a pole. It has a detachable lid.

It seems that the art of making lacquer came to Burma from China as China had been making it for 3,000 years, but it may not have been directly.

Bagan was and is largest and most important centre for lacquer production in Burma.

Lacquer is made from the sap of the htanaung and neem trees. It is tapped like rubber. The grey, viscous liquid turns glossy black on exposure to the air. Objects, which are covered in lacquer, are usually of wood or bamboo, which can be made extremely flexible by interweaving horsehair.

It can also be used as a coating on cane, palm leaf, metal and leather. It forms a hard surface when dry and waterproofs the object and is insect resistant.

Numerous coatings of lacquer are applied. After each application the object is left to dry. The process may take 6 months or longer. A fine piece may have 26 applications. Lacquer furniture can take 2 years to make.

Colour can be applied to it. Traditionally red colouring is used for Burmese lacquer. It is the most distinctive and brilliant and is produced by adding powdered mercuric sulphide, cinnabar, to the lacquer sap.  Ocher and red paint may also be used.  It is added by hand on top of the black lacquer surface. Then dried. Green and yellow are sometimes used, but rarely blue.

In pre-colonial times lacquered boxes stored royal jewels, letters and Buddhist manuscripts. Lacquered trays are still used to give food to the monks.

Ordinary people use lacquer containers for food, clothing, cosmetics and flowers, in preference to the increasingly common metal and plastic.

Map of Bagan.

Mid 20th century.

There is a similar example in Oscar Niemeyer Museum, Curitiba,  Brazil and in Burmese Crafts Past and Present, Sylvia Fraser-Lu, Oxford University Press, 1994, page 228.

Please ask for the price (or make an offer).

The post Antique Burmese Container appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Bamboo, lacquer
Style: Burma
Size: Height 20.5 cm, Diameter 40 cm
Order Number: MHSABT1

A daung-lan, a low circular table, around which the family sit on the floor to eat.

It seems that the art of making lacquer came to Burma from China as China had been making it for 3,000 years, but it may not have been directly.

Bagan was and is largest and most important centre for lacquer production in Burma.

Lacquer is made from the sap of the htanaung and neem trees. It is tapped like rubber. The grey, viscous liquid turns glossy black on exposure to the air. Objects, which are covered in lacquer, are usually of wood or bamboo, which can be made extremely flexible by interweaving horsehair.

It can also be used as a coating on cane, palm leaf, metal and leather. It forms a hard surface when dry and waterproofs the object and is insect resistant.

Numerous coatings of lacquer are applied. After each application the object is left to dry. The process may take 6 months or longer. A fine piece may have 26 applications. Lacquer furniture can take 2 years to make.

Colour can be applied to it. Traditionally red colouring is used for Burmese lacquer. It is the most distinctive and brilliant and is produced by adding powdered mercuric sulphide, cinnabar, to the lacquer sap.  Ocher and red paint may also be used.  It is added by hand on top of the black lacquer surface. Then dried. Green and yellow are sometimes used, but rarely blue.

In pre-colonial times lacquered boxes stored royal jewels, letters and Buddhist manuscripts. Lacquered trays are still used to give food to the monks.

Ordinary people use lacquer containers for food, clothing, cosmetics and flowers, in preference to the increasingly common metal and plastic.

Map of Bagan.

About 80-90 years.

Please ask for the price (or make an offer).

The post Antique Burmese Table 1 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Wood, lacquer
Style: Bagan, Burma
Size: Height 23 cm, Width 47 cm, Depth 28 cm
Order Number: MHSABWLB1

After bamboo basketry, wood is the most common base for lacquer. Boxes of all sizes are made using lacquer. This is a fine, well-proportioned box, red lacquer and a black lacquer base. It is rectangular with a hinged lid and raised up on four feet.

The yun (lacquer) decoration is dense, gyrating and spread all over the surfaces of the box (except for the base). It is unclear what the narrative is. The box would have been intended as a storage box, probably for special or valuable items, such as sacred books.

Mid 20th century.

There is a similar red lacquer box in Burma and the Art of Lacquer, Ralph Isaacs and T. Richard Blurton, River Books, 2000, page 86.

Please ask the price (or make an offer).

The post Antique Burmese Wooden Lacquer Box appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Bamboo, lacquer
Style: Bagan, Burma
Size: Height 9 cm, Diameter 11 cm
Order Number: MHSL5

This betel box,  called kun it, has 3 separate sections. The upper cartouche has the  Burmese date 1282 which is 1920 AD. It also gives the month:  Wakhaung, which is the 5th month of the Myanmar lunar calendar and corresponds to August.

Wakhaung falls in the rainy season. It is a combination of two words. Wa means Buddhist Lent and Khaung means middle or peak. Thus, it’s the middle or the peak of the Buddhist Lent  which lasts 3 months of the rainy season, namely Waso (July), Wakhaung (August) and Tawthalin (September).

The most traditional lacquer receptacle is the betel box. It is made of woven bamboo and inside are shallow trays to hold items for making the betel chew. The chew is prepared by taking a betel leaf, smearing it with slaked lime and wrapping it around thin slices of areca nut from the areca palm tree.

Other ingredients may be added: tobacco, dried orange peel, cardamom, cloves, cinnamon, cumin and liqorice. Chewing betel has a refreshing, slightly stimulating effect. The items are placed between the cheek and teeth and slowly savoured.

Betel nut was used by men and women of all social standings. Today it tends to be enjoyed mainly by older people.

It stimulates copious saliva, reduces the appetite and increases thirst. Saliva turns bright red, as do the mouth, lips and teeth. Eventually teeth turn black and fall out.

It seems that the art of making lacquer came to Burma from China. China had been making it for 3,000 years, but it may not have come directly.

Bagan was and is largest and most important centre for lacquer production in Burma.

Lacquer is made from the sap of the htanaung and neem trees. It is tapped like rubber. The grey, viscous liquid turns glossy black on exposure to the air. Objects, which are covered in lacquer, are usually of wood or bamboo, which can be made extremely flexible by interweaving horsehair.

It can also be used as a coating on cane, palm leaf, metal and leather. It forms a hard surface when dry and waterproofs the object and is insect resistant.

Numerous coatings of lacquer are applied. After each application the object is left to dry. The process may take 6 months or longer. A fine piece may have 26 applications. Lacquer furniture can take 2 years to make.

Colour can be applied to it. Traditionally red colouring is used for Burmese lacquer. It is the most distinctive and brilliant and is produced by adding powdered mercuric sulphide, cinnabar, to the lacquer sap.  Ocher and red paint may also be used.  It is added by hand on top of the black lacquer surface. Then dried. Green and yellow are sometimes used, but rarely blue.

In pre-colonial times lacquered boxes stored royal jewels, letters and Buddhist manuscripts. Lacquered trays are still used to give food to the monks.

Ordinary people use lacquer containers for food, clothing, cosmetics and flowers, in preference to the increasingly common metal and plastic.

Map of Bagan.

Dated 1920.

Please ask for the price (or make an offer).

The post Burmese Betel Box appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Bamboo, lacquer
Style: Bagan, Burma
Size: Height 4.75 cm, Length 7.5 cm, Depth 14 cm
Order Number: MHSBFCB1

This cylinder box,  called it, would have been used for snacks.

It seems that the art of making lacquer came to Burma from China. China had been making it for 3,000 years, but it may not have come directly.

Bagan was and is largest and most important centre for lacquer production in Burma.

Lacquer is made from the sap of the htanaung and neem trees. It is tapped like rubber. The grey, viscous liquid turns glossy black on exposure to the air. Objects, which are covered in lacquer, are usually of wood or bamboo, which can be made extremely flexible by interweaving horsehair.

It can also be used as a coating on cane, palm leaf, metal and leather. It forms a hard surface when dry and waterproofs the object and is insect resistant.

Numerous coatings of lacquer are applied. After each application the object is left to dry. The process may take 6 months or longer. A fine piece may have 26 applications. Lacquer furniture can take 2 years to make.

Colour can be applied to it. Traditionally red colouring is used for Burmese lacquer. It is the most distinctive and brilliant and is produced by adding powdered mercuric sulphide, cinnabar, to the lacquer sap.  Ocher and red paint may also be used.  It is added by hand on top of the black lacquer surface. Then dried. Green and yellow are sometimes used, but rarely blue.

In pre-colonial times lacquered boxes stored royal jewels, letters and Buddhist manuscripts. Lacquered trays are still used to give food to the monks.

Ordinary people use lacquer containers for food, clothing, cosmetics and flowers, in preference to the increasingly common metal and plastic.

Map of Bagan.

Please ask for the price (or make an offer).

The post Burmese Flat Cylinder Box appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Bamboo, lacquer
Style: Bagan, Burma
Size: Height 7 cm, Circumference at top 45 cm
Order Number: MHSLB1

It seems that the art of making lacquer came to Burma from China. China had been making it for 3,000 years, but it may not have come directly.

Bagan was and is largest and most important centre for lacquer production in Burma.

Lacquer is made from the sap of the htanaung and neem trees. It is tapped like rubber. The grey, viscous liquid turns glossy black on exposure to the air. Objects, which are covered in lacquer, are usually of wood or bamboo, which can be made extremely flexible by interweaving horsehair.

It can also be used as a coating on cane, palm leaf, metal and leather. It forms a hard surface when dry and waterproofs the object and is insect resistant.

Numerous coatings of lacquer are applied. After each application the object is left to dry. The process may take 6 months or longer. A fine piece may have 26 applications. Lacquer furniture can take 2 years to make.

Colour can be applied to it. Traditionally red colouring is used for Burmese lacquer. It is the most distinctive and brilliant and is produced by adding powdered mercuric sulphide, cinnabar, to the lacquer sap.  Ocher and red paint may also be used.  It is added by hand on top of the black lacquer surface. Then dried. Green and yellow are sometimes used, but rarely blue.

In pre-colonial times lacquered boxes stored royal jewels, letters and Buddhist manuscripts. Lacquered trays are still used to give food to the monks.

Ordinary people use lacquer containers for food, clothing, cosmetics and flowers, in preference to the increasingly common metal and plastic.

Map of Bagan.

Please ask for the price (or make an offer).

The post Burmese Lacquer Bowl appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Bamboo, lacquer
Style: Bagan, Burma
Size: Height 12 cm, Width 10 cm
Order Number: L4

It seems that the art of making lacquer came to Burma from China. China had been making it for 3,000 years, but it may not have come directly.

Bagan was and is largest and most important centre for lacquer production in Burma.

Lacquer is made from the sap of the htanaung and neem trees. It is tapped like rubber. The grey, viscous liquid turns glossy black on exposure to the air. Objects, which are covered in lacquer, are usually of wood or bamboo, which can be made extremely flexible by interweaving horsehair.

It can also be used as a coating on cane, palm leaf, metal and leather. It forms a hard surface when dry and waterproofs the object and is insect resistant.

Numerous coatings of lacquer are applied. After each application the object is left to dry. The process may take 6 months or longer. A fine piece may have 26 applications. Lacquer furniture can take 2 years to make.

Colour can be applied to it. Traditionally red colouring is used for Burmese lacquer. It is the most distinctive and brilliant and is produced by adding powdered mercuric sulphide, cinnabar, to the lacquer sap.  Ocher and red paint may also be used.  It is added by hand on top of the black lacquer surface. Then dried. Green and yellow are sometimes used, but rarely blue.

In pre-colonial times lacquered boxes stored royal jewels, letters and Buddhist manuscripts. Lacquered trays are still used to give food to the monks.

Ordinary people use lacquer containers for food, clothing, cosmetics and flowers, in preference to the increasingly common metal and plastic.

Map of Bagan.

Please ask for the price (or make an offer).

The post Burmese Lacquer Box appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Bamboo, lacquer, horsehair
Style: Bagan, Burma
Size: Height 7 cm, Diameter 8 cm
Order Number: MHSL3

The woven horsehair results in a drinking cup that is so flexible, even after it has been lacquered, that the sides can be bent in close to one another, sometimes even touching.

It seems that the art of making lacquer came to Burma from China. China had been making it for 3,000 years, but it may not have come directly.

Bagan was and is largest and most important centre for lacquer production in Burma.

Lacquer is made from the sap of the htanaung and neem trees. It is tapped like rubber. The grey, viscous liquid turns glossy black on exposure to the air. Objects, which are covered in lacquer, are usually of wood or bamboo, which can be made extremely flexible by interweaving horsehair.

It can also be used as a coating on cane, palm leaf, metal and leather. It forms a hard surface when dry and waterproofs the object and is insect resistant.

Numerous coatings of lacquer are applied. After each application the object is left to dry. The process may take 6 months or longer. A fine piece may have 26 applications. Lacquer furniture can take 2 years to make.

Colour can be applied to it. Traditionally red colouring is used for Burmese lacquer. It is the most distinctive and brilliant and is produced by adding powdered mercuric sulphide, cinnabar, to the lacquer sap.  Ocher and red paint may also be used.  It is added by hand on top of the black lacquer surface. Then dried. Green and yellow are sometimes used, but rarely blue.

In pre-colonial times lacquered boxes stored royal jewels, letters and Buddhist manuscripts. Lacquered trays are still used to give food to the monks.

Ordinary people use lacquer containers for food, clothing, cosmetics and flowers, in preference to the increasingly common metal and plastic.

Map of Bagan.

Please ask for the price (or make an offer).

The post Burmese Lacquer Cup 1 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Bamboo, lacquer, horsehair
Style: Bagan, Burma
Size: Height 7 cm, Diameter 8 cm
Order Number: MHSL4

The woven horsehair results in a drinking cup that is so flexible, even after it has been lacquered, that the sides can be bent in close to one another, sometimes even touching.

It seems that the art of making lacquer came to Burma from China. China had been making it for 3,000 years, but it may not have come directly.

Bagan was and is largest and most important centre for lacquer production in Burma.

Lacquer is made from the sap of the htanaung and neem trees. It is tapped like rubber. The grey, viscous liquid turns glossy black on exposure to the air. Objects, which are covered in lacquer, are usually of wood or bamboo, which can be made extremely flexible by interweaving horsehair.

It can also be used as a coating on cane, palm leaf, metal and leather. It forms a hard surface when dry and waterproofs the object and is insect resistant.

Numerous coatings of lacquer are applied. After each application the object is left to dry. The process may take 6 months or longer. A fine piece may have 26 applications. Lacquer furniture can take 2 years to make.

Colour can be applied to it. Traditionally red colouring is used for Burmese lacquer. It is the most distinctive and brilliant and is produced by adding powdered mercuric sulphide, cinnabar, to the lacquer sap.  Ocher and red paint may also be used.  It is added by hand on top of the black lacquer surface. Then dried. Green and yellow are sometimes used, but rarely blue.

In pre-colonial times lacquered boxes stored royal jewels, letters and Buddhist manuscripts. Lacquered trays are still used to give food to the monks.

Ordinary people use lacquer containers for food, clothing, cosmetics and flowers, in preference to the increasingly common metal and plastic.

Map of Bagan.

Please ask for the price (or make an offer).

The post Burmese Lacquer Cup 2 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Bamboo, lacquer, horsehair
Style: Bagan, Burma
Size: Height 7 cm, Diameter 8 cm
Order Number: MHSL5

The woven horsehair results in a drinking cup that is so flexible, even after it has been lacquered, that the sides can be bent in close to one another, sometimes even touching.

It seems that the art of making lacquer came to Burma from China. China had been making it for 3,000 years, but it may not have come directly.

Bagan was and is largest and most important centre for lacquer production in Burma.

Lacquer is made from the sap of the htanaung and neem trees. It is tapped like rubber. The grey, viscous liquid turns glossy black on exposure to the air. Objects, which are covered in lacquer, are usually of wood or bamboo, which can be made extremely flexible by interweaving horsehair.

It can also be used as a coating on cane, palm leaf, metal and leather. It forms a hard surface when dry and waterproofs the object and is insect resistant.

Numerous coatings of lacquer are applied. After each application the object is left to dry. The process may take 6 months or longer. A fine piece may have 26 applications. Lacquer furniture can take 2 years to make.

Colour can be applied to it. Traditionally red colouring is used for Burmese lacquer. It is the most distinctive and brilliant and is produced by adding powdered mercuric sulphide, cinnabar, to the lacquer sap.  Ocher and red paint may also be used.  It is added by hand on top of the black lacquer surface. Then dried. Green and yellow are sometimes used, but rarely blue.

In pre-colonial times lacquered boxes stored royal jewels, letters and Buddhist manuscripts. Lacquered trays are still used to give food to the monks.

Ordinary people use lacquer containers for food, clothing, cosmetics and flowers, in preference to the increasingly common metal and plastic.

Map of Bagan.

Please ask for the price (or make an offer).

The post Burmese Lacquer Cup 3 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Bamboo, lacquer, horsehair
Style: Bagan, Burma
Size: Height 6 cm, Diameter 10 cm
Order Number: MHSL6

The woven horsehair results in a drinking cup that is so flexible, even after it has been lacquered, that the sides can be bent in close to one another, sometimes even touching.

It seems that the art of making lacquer came to Burma from China. China had been making it for 3,000 years, but it may not have come directly.

Bagan was and is largest and most important centre for lacquer production in Burma.

Lacquer is made from the sap of the htanaung and neem trees. It is tapped like rubber. The grey, viscous liquid turns glossy black on exposure to the air. Objects, which are covered in lacquer, are usually of wood or bamboo, which can be made extremely flexible by interweaving horsehair.

It can also be used as a coating on cane, palm leaf, metal and leather. It forms a hard surface when dry and waterproofs the object and is insect resistant.

Numerous coatings of lacquer are applied. After each application the object is left to dry. The process may take 6 months or longer. A fine piece may have 26 applications. Lacquer furniture can take 2 years to make.

Colour can be applied to it. Traditionally red colouring is used for Burmese lacquer. It is the most distinctive and brilliant and is produced by adding powdered mercuric sulphide, cinnabar, to the lacquer sap.  Ocher and red paint may also be used.  It is added by hand on top of the black lacquer surface. Then dried. Green and yellow are sometimes used, but rarely blue.

In pre-colonial times lacquered boxes stored royal jewels, letters and Buddhist manuscripts. Lacquered trays are still used to give food to the monks.

Ordinary people use lacquer containers for food, clothing, cosmetics and flowers, in preference to the increasingly common metal and plastic.

Map of Bagan.

Please ask for the price (or make an offer).

The post Burmese Lacquer Cup 4 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Bamboo, lacquer, horsehair
Style: Bagan, Burma
Size: Height 7 cm, Diameter 10 cm
Order Number: MHSL7

The woven horsehair results in a drinking cup that is so flexible, even after it has been lacquered, that the sides can be bent in close to one another, sometimes even touching.

It seems that the art of making lacquer came to Burma from China. China had been making it for 3,000 years, but it may not have come directly.

Bagan was and is largest and most important centre for lacquer production in Burma.

Lacquer is made from the sap of the htanaung and neem trees. It is tapped like rubber. The grey, viscous liquid turns glossy black on exposure to the air. Objects, which are covered in lacquer, are usually of wood or bamboo, which can be made extremely flexible by interweaving horsehair.

It can also be used as a coating on cane, palm leaf, metal and leather. It forms a hard surface when dry and waterproofs the object and is insect resistant.

Numerous coatings of lacquer are applied. After each application the object is left to dry. The process may take 6 months or longer. A fine piece may have 26 applications. Lacquer furniture can take 2 years to make.

Colour can be applied to it. Traditionally red colouring is used for Burmese lacquer. It is the most distinctive and brilliant and is produced by adding powdered mercuric sulphide, cinnabar, to the lacquer sap.  Ocher and red paint may also be used.  It is added by hand on top of the black lacquer surface. Then dried. Green and yellow are sometimes used, but rarely blue.

In pre-colonial times lacquered boxes stored royal jewels, letters and Buddhist manuscripts. Lacquered trays are still used to give food to the monks.

Ordinary people use lacquer containers for food, clothing, cosmetics and flowers, in preference to the increasingly common metal and plastic.

Map of Bagan.

Please ask for the price (or make an offer).

The post Burmese Lacquer Cup 5 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Bamboo, lacquer, horsehair
Style: Bagan, Burma
Size: Height 6.5 cm, Diameter 10 cm
Order Number: MHSL8

The woven horsehair results in a drinking cup that is so flexible, even after it has been lacquered, that the sides can be bent in close to one another, sometimes even touching.

The side of the cup is decorated by a  chinthe, which is a stylized lion, a leogryph, a guardian frequently seen outside Buddhist pagodas and  monasteries.

It seems that the art of making lacquer came to Burma from China. China had been making it for 3,000 years, but it may not have come directly.

Bagan was and is largest and most important centre for lacquer production in Burma.

Lacquer is made from the sap of the htanaung and neem trees. It is tapped like rubber. The grey, viscous liquid turns glossy black on exposure to the air. Objects, which are covered in lacquer, are usually of wood or bamboo, which can be made extremely flexible by interweaving horsehair.

It can also be used as a coating on cane, palm leaf, metal and leather. It forms a hard surface when dry and waterproofs the object and is insect resistant.

Numerous coatings of lacquer are applied. After each application the object is left to dry. The process may take 6 months or longer. A fine piece may have 26 applications. Lacquer furniture can take 2 years to make.

Colour can be applied to it. Traditionally red colouring is used for Burmese lacquer. It is the most distinctive and brilliant and is produced by adding powdered mercuric sulphide, cinnabar, to the lacquer sap.  Ocher and red paint may also be used.  It is added by hand on top of the black lacquer surface. Then dried. Green and yellow are sometimes used, but rarely blue.

In pre-colonial times lacquered boxes stored royal jewels, letters and Buddhist manuscripts. Lacquered trays are still used to give food to the monks.

Ordinary people use lacquer containers for food, clothing, cosmetics and flowers, in preference to the increasingly common metal and plastic.

Map of Bagan.

Please ask for the price (or make an offer).

The post Burmese Lacquer Cup 6 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Bamboo, lacquer, horsehair
Style: Bagan, Burma
Size: Height 6 cm, Diameter 10.5 cm
Order Number: MHSL9

The woven horsehair results in a drinking cup that is so flexible, even after it has been lacquered, that the sides can be bent in close to one another, sometimes even touching.

It seems that the art of making lacquer came to Burma from China. China had been making it for 3,000 years, but it may not have come directly.

Bagan was and is largest and most important centre for lacquer production in Burma.

Lacquer is made from the sap of the htanaung and neem trees. It is tapped like rubber. The grey, viscous liquid turns glossy black on exposure to the air. Objects, which are covered in lacquer, are usually of wood or bamboo, which can be made extremely flexible by interweaving horsehair.

It can also be used as a coating on cane, palm leaf, metal and leather. It forms a hard surface when dry and waterproofs the object and is insect resistant.

Numerous coatings of lacquer are applied. After each application the object is left to dry. The process may take 6 months or longer. A fine piece may have 26 applications. Lacquer furniture can take 2 years to make.

Colour can be applied to it. Traditionally red colouring is used for Burmese lacquer. It is the most distinctive and brilliant and is produced by adding powdered mercuric sulphide, cinnabar, to the lacquer sap.  Ocher and red paint may also be used.  It is added by hand on top of the black lacquer surface. Then dried. Green and yellow are sometimes used, but rarely blue.

In pre-colonial times lacquered boxes stored royal jewels, letters and Buddhist manuscripts. Lacquered trays are still used to give food to the monks.

Ordinary people use lacquer containers for food, clothing, cosmetics and flowers, in preference to the increasingly common metal and plastic.

Map of Bagan.

Please ask for the price (or make an offer).

The post Burmese Lacquer Cup 7 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Bamboo, lacquer
Style: Bagan, Burma
Size: Length 39 cm, Circumference 16 cm
Order Number: L6

Cylindrical letter tubes were used to hold letters to and from senior monks or officials and documents, such as university degrees.

It seems that the art of making lacquer came to Burma from China. China had been making it for 3,000 years, but it may not have come directly.

Bagan was and is largest and most important centre for lacquer production in Burma.

Lacquer is made from the sap of the htanaung and neem trees. It is tapped like rubber. The grey, viscous liquid turns glossy black on exposure to the air. Objects, which are covered in lacquer, are usually of wood or bamboo, which can be made extremely flexible by interweaving horsehair.

It can also be used as a coating on cane, palm leaf, metal and leather. It forms a hard surface when dry and waterproofs the object and is insect resistant.

Numerous coatings of lacquer are applied. After each application the object is left to dry. The process may take 6 months or longer. A fine piece may have 26 applications. Lacquer furniture can take 2 years to make.

Colour can be applied to it. Traditionally red colouring is used for Burmese lacquer. It is the most distinctive and brilliant and is produced by adding powdered mercuric sulphide, cinnabar, to the lacquer sap.  Ocher and red paint may also be used.  It is added by hand on top of the black lacquer surface. Then dried. Green and yellow are sometimes used, but rarely blue.

In pre-colonial times lacquered boxes stored royal jewels, letters and Buddhist manuscripts. Lacquered trays are still used to give food to the monks.

Ordinary people use lacquer containers for food, clothing, cosmetics and flowers, in preference to the increasingly common metal and plastic.

Map of Bagan.

Please ask for the price (or make an offer).

The post Burmese Lacquer Letter Tube appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Bamboo, lacquer
Style: Bagan, Burma
Size: Height 30 cm, Circumference at the widest point 95 cm
Order Number: MHSL7

This uniquely Burmese, beautifully striking vessel is used by rich families to present food to the monastery. The wide bowl is supported on small legs.

The tapering lid is assembled from a series of circular, shallow trays that fit snugly one on top of the other. They are used as plates or trays to serve the food within.

The inverted bowl, crowning the vessel and ressembling a stupa, can be used as a ladle or drinking cup. Rice, fruit or boiled eggs are placed at the bottom of the bowl and the fitted trays above hold curry, condiments, betel and cheroots.

The vessel may be carried in the arms. More often, though, women carry them on their heads.

It seems that the art of making lacquer came to Burma from China. China had been making it for 3,000 years, but it may not have come directly.

Bagan was and is largest and most important centre for lacquer production in Burma.

Lacquer is made from the sap of the htanaung and neem trees. It is tapped like rubber. The grey, viscous liquid turns glossy black on exposure to the air. Objects, which are covered in lacquer, are usually of wood or bamboo, which can be made extremely flexible by interweaving horsehair.

It can also be used as a coating on cane, palm leaf, metal and leather. It forms a hard surface when dry and waterproofs the object and is insect resistant.

Numerous coatings of lacquer are applied. After each application the object is left to dry. The process may take 6 months or longer. A fine piece may have 26 applications. Lacquer furniture can take 2 years to make.

Colour can be applied to it. Traditionally red colouring is used for Burmese lacquer. It is the most distinctive and brilliant and is produced by adding powdered mercuric sulphide, cinnabar, to the lacquer sap.  Ocher and red paint may also be used.  It is added by hand on top of the black lacquer surface. Then dried. Green and yellow are sometimes used, but rarely blue.

In pre-colonial times lacquered boxes stored royal jewels, letters and Buddhist manuscripts. Lacquered trays are still used to give food to the monks.

Ordinary people use lacquer containers for food, clothing, cosmetics and flowers, in preference to the increasingly common metal and plastic.

Parts of it are chipped.

Map of Bagan.

Please ask for the price (or make an offer).

The post Burmese Lacquer Offering Vessel appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Bamboo, lacquer
Style: Bagan, Burma
Size: Length 21 cm, Width 16 cm
Order Number: MHSBLOP1

It seems that the art of making lacquer came to Burma from China. China had been making it for 3,000 years, but it may not have come directly.

Bagan was and is largest and most important centre for lacquer production in Burma.

Lacquer is made from the sap of the htanaung and neem trees. It is tapped like rubber. The grey, viscous liquid turns glossy black on exposure to the air. Objects, which are covered in lacquer, are usually of wood or bamboo, which can be made extremely flexible by interweaving horsehair.

It can also be used as a coating on cane, palm leaf, metal and leather. It forms a hard surface when dry and waterproofs the object and is insect resistant.

Numerous coatings of lacquer are applied. After each application the object is left to dry. The process may take 6 months or longer. A fine piece may have 26 applications. Lacquer furniture can take 2 years to make.

Colour can be applied to it. Traditionally red colouring is used for Burmese lacquer. It is the most distinctive and brilliant and is produced by adding powdered mercuric sulphide, cinnabar, to the lacquer sap.  Ocher and red paint may also be used.  It is added by hand on top of the black lacquer surface. Then dried. Green and yellow are sometimes used, but rarely blue.

In pre-colonial times lacquered boxes stored royal jewels, letters and Buddhist manuscripts. Lacquered trays are still used to give food to the monks.

Ordinary people use lacquer containers for food, clothing, cosmetics and flowers, in preference to the increasingly common metal and plastic.

Map of Bagan.

Please ask for the price (or make an offer).

The post Burmese Lacquer Oval Plate 1 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Bamboo, lacquer
Style: Bagan, Burma
Size: Length 23.5 cm, Width 17.5 cm
Order Number: MHSBLOP2

It seems that the art of making lacquer came to Burma from China. China had been making it for 3,000 years, but it may not have come directly.

Bagan was and is largest and most important centre for lacquer production in Burma.

Lacquer is made from the sap of the htanaung and neem trees. It is tapped like rubber. The grey, viscous liquid turns glossy black on exposure to the air. Objects, which are covered in lacquer, are usually of wood or bamboo, which can be made extremely flexible by interweaving horsehair.

It can also be used as a coating on cane, palm leaf, metal and leather. It forms a hard surface when dry and waterproofs the object and is insect resistant.

Numerous coatings of lacquer are applied. After each application the object is left to dry. The process may take 6 months or longer. A fine piece may have 26 applications. Lacquer furniture can take 2 years to make.

Colour can be applied to it. Traditionally red colouring is used for Burmese lacquer. It is the most distinctive and brilliant and is produced by adding powdered mercuric sulphide, cinnabar, to the lacquer sap.  Ocher and red paint may also be used.  It is added by hand on top of the black lacquer surface. Then dried. Green and yellow are sometimes used, but rarely blue.

In pre-colonial times lacquered boxes stored royal jewels, letters and Buddhist manuscripts. Lacquered trays are still used to give food to the monks.

Ordinary people use lacquer containers for food, clothing, cosmetics and flowers, in preference to the increasingly common metal and plastic.

Map of Bagan.

Please ask for the price (or make an offer).

The post Burmese Lacquer Oval Plate 2 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Bamboo, lacquer
Style: Bagan, Burma
Size: Length 26 cm, Width 19.5 cm
Order Number: MHSBLOP3

It seems that the art of making lacquer came to Burma from China. China had been making it for 3,000 years, but it may not have come directly.

Bagan was and is largest and most important centre for lacquer production in Burma.

Lacquer is made from the sap of the htanaung and neem trees. It is tapped like rubber. The grey, viscous liquid turns glossy black on exposure to the air. Objects, which are covered in lacquer, are usually of wood or bamboo, which can be made extremely flexible by interweaving horsehair.

It can also be used as a coating on cane, palm leaf, metal and leather. It forms a hard surface when dry and waterproofs the object and is insect resistant.

Numerous coatings of lacquer are applied. After each application the object is left to dry. The process may take 6 months or longer. A fine piece may have 26 applications. Lacquer furniture can take 2 years to make.

Colour can be applied to it. Traditionally red colouring is used for Burmese lacquer. It is the most distinctive and brilliant and is produced by adding powdered mercuric sulphide, cinnabar, to the lacquer sap.  Ocher and red paint may also be used.  It is added by hand on top of the black lacquer surface. Then dried. Green and yellow are sometimes used, but rarely blue.

In pre-colonial times lacquered boxes stored royal jewels, letters and Buddhist manuscripts. Lacquered trays are still used to give food to the monks.

Ordinary people use lacquer containers for food, clothing, cosmetics and flowers, in preference to the increasingly common metal and plastic.

Map of Bagan.

Please ask for the price (or make an offer).

The post Burmese Lacquer Oval Plate 3 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.

Material: Lacquer
Style: Bagan, Burma
Size: Height 5 cm, Diameter 4 cm
Order Number: MHSLO1

It seems that the art of making lacquer came to Burma from China. China had been making it for 3,000 years, but it may not have come directly.

Bagan was and is largest and most important centre for lacquer production in Burma.

Lacquer is made from the sap of the htanaung and neem trees. It is tapped like rubber. The grey, viscous liquid turns glossy black on exposure to the air. Objects, which are covered in lacquer, are usually of wood or bamboo, which can be made extremely flexible by interweaving horsehair.

It can also be used as a coating on cane, palm leaf, metal and leather. It forms a hard surface when dry and waterproofs the object and is insect resistant.

Numerous coatings of lacquer are applied. After each application the object is left to dry. The process may take 6 months or longer. A fine piece may have 26 applications. Lacquer furniture can take 2 years to make.

In pre-colonial times lacquered boxes stored royal jewels, letters and Buddhist manuscripts. Lacquered trays are still used to give food to the monks.

Ordinary people use lacquer containers for food, clothing, cosmetics and flowers, in preference to the increasingly common metal and plastic.

With the conquest of Ayutthaya in 1767 Burma acquired a number of gilded lacquer techniques from Thailand. One was shwei-zawa, which is the decoration of black lustrous lacquer with gold leaf designs. In pre-colonial times this technique was restricted to royal and religious items.

Bagan is the present day centre for this craft. Gold leaf is expensive, so pieces are usually made to order.

The top is removable. The owl is lucky in Burma.

Map of Bagan.

Please ask for the price (or make an offer).

The post Burmese Lacquer Owl 1 appeared first on Murni's in Bali.