A COPPER ALLOY 'DRAGON AND LINGZHI' TRAVEL WRITING SET, 17TH-18TH CENTURY China. The shaft containing a brush and decorated to each side with a sinuous dragon in high relief, separated by swirling clouds in low relief, one end with a key-fret border and the other with an aperture for suspension. The inkwell neatly incised with a wave pattern and decorated with lingzhi to the backside and on the hinged cover. The underside of the inkwell with a four-character mark within a reserve.

Expert's note: The present portable writing set has the form of a yatate, a type of small personal smoking-pipe-shaped writing set from medieval Japan which provided a carrying box for the ink cotton, and a shaft for a brush. However, the Chinese mark and manner of decoration with lingzhi, dragons, and keyfret strongly indicate that this piece was either made by Chinese artisans or possibly manufactured in Japan for the Chinese market.

Inscriptions: To the base of the inkwell, 'Yuegui Zhai'.

Provenance: The Strong National Museum of Play, accession number 75.53.80 (lacquered to base of inkwell). Margaret Woodbury Strong (1897-1969) grew up in a prosperous family of collectors. Her interests ranged so widely that by 1960 she had amassed more than 27,000 collectible items and works of art. The vast majority of her collections related in some way to play and as her accumulation grew, Margaret planned a museum to house her collection. It eventually opened to the public in 1982, and grew dramatically over the following decades, expanding its collections, facilities, and resources, now spanning over 285,000 square feet. Today, the Strong National Museum of Play (known as just The Strong Museum or simply The Strong) is the only collections-based museum in the world devoted solely to the study of play.
Condition: Very good condition with some old wear and minor casting flaws, few tiny nicks, dents and losses, a small crack to the end of the brush holder.

Weight: 193.0 g
Dimensions: Length 17.5 cm

Accompanied by a small brush dating from the Qing dynasty. (2)



十七至十八世紀便携靈芝龍紋銅筆墨套
中國。銅套內裝有一支毛筆，套外壁每側飾有一條高浮雕龍紋，淺浮雕如意雲紋，一端有雷紋飾帶邊框，另一端有一個懸掛孔。墨井外壁淺浮雕波浪紋，背面和蓋上飾有靈芝。墨井底部有四字款。

專家注釋：這件便攜式筆墨套具有日本風格的小型煙斗形筆墨套，用於放置筆墨。不過，中國的靈芝、龍和雷紋裝飾和方式表明這件拍品是由中國工匠製作的，或是日本為中國市場製造的。

款識：桂月齋作

來源：紐約Strong 國立美術館，收藏編號75.53.80 (見筆墨套底)。Margaret Woodbury Strong (1897-1969) 成長於一個富裕的收藏家家庭。 她的興趣範圍非常廣泛，到 1960 年爲止，她已經積累了 27,000 多件收藏品和藝術品。她的絕大多數收藏都以特定方式與玩耍有關，隨著她的收藏不斷擴大，Margaret計劃建立一個博物館來展示她的收藏。美術館最終於 1982 年向公眾開放，並在接下來的幾十年裡，其收藏、設施和資源急速擴大，現在佔地超過 285,000 平方英尺。 今天，Strong 國立游戲美術館（簡稱為 The Strong 美術館館或簡稱為 The Strong）是世界上唯一一家專注於遊戲研究的以收藏為基礎的博物館。
品相：狀況極好，有一些磨損和輕微的鑄造缺陷，少量微小的刻痕、凹痕和缺損，末端有一個小裂縫。

重量：193.0 克
尺寸：長17.5 厘米

一隻可能是清代的毛筆。