I find this color soapstone very rich - sort of yummy - and there is a grain that gives the impression of a wood carving

One of my earliest memories of my surroundings is of a row of monkeys, See No Evil, Hear No Evil, Speak No Evil.  My mother didn't like ANYthing old, she was a young married woman in The Great Depression.  Some became real savers, not her, she wanted nothing old at all. but a handful of things that had sentimental value survived. I see that folks are calling these soapstone carvings  brushpots and dating them anywhere from 1880 to much earlier, so there you are.  Stuff by the ton has arrived ever since China and surrounding areas "opened up".  Very exotic.  Sailors brought small things in their seabags and the wealthy scooped up treasures. Nothing came in the volumes that have been dumped on us since our Great Leaders opened the floodgates to the Trojan horse.  So this little sculpture would have served as a brushpot for artist or scholar, was not carved for a tourist market, but appeared in some marketplace in one of the Western licensed ports, Macao, Hong Kong, Shanghai to be scooped up and brought home to mother, wife, loved one and kept forever as a momento. There is a monkey and there is a duck - that 3rd animal looks like an oversized squirrel with an interesting tail - maybe the only way the carver could manage a fluffy tail.  Looks more like a beaver.

Most items are shipped, however if you are local and want to take a little ride and save the shipping, that's up to you.  Local pickup actually means that you plan to pick up your purchases in person, great in the case of heavy or large packages and furniture.  It costs you nothing.  Please make your arrangements with me.  Please.  Understand that if you want your items delivered to your door with any likelihood of surviving the barbarians that carry them, it will require packaging on our end and a shipping label, the cost of which is determined based upon weight and dimensions.  I don't invent these things.

Policies & Procedures to improve your eBay experience:

If your item arrives broken - we are BOTH sad and no one did it to you on purpose and you must send me a picture of the item, smashed beyond usefulness (so I am not squinting to see damage in a 2 inch picture) and we'll get you taken care of.  Breakage is an inconvenience and disappointment for both of us, so no need to get all defensive and I am hardly ever interested in seeing a broken item back in my mailbox.  After all, if it's broken, I sure don't want to sell it to someone else.  

Use the shopping cart if you want a shipping deal.  I love multiple purchases and there is nearly always a better deal on getting more than one item in a box.  That deal is unpredictable however.  If one dinner plate costs $12 to ship, it might be that 3 of the same will cost about the same - shipping is an art AND a science.  Choosing a shipper depends on weight, dimensions, AND where you are.  The automated calculator feature will do its best, but please use the shopping cart because it will allow you to make purchases without shoving you through the automated paying process.  I have to manually adjust your invoice for the shipping savings so don't pay some automated thing with the incorrect amount - wait for the one that matches our agreement.

Ask questions!  Ebay has become increasingly complex in its efforts to simplify.  If you are new or unaccustomed to purchasing vintage pieces or just want to ask what I mean by "flamingo pink", I will be glad to help you through the process.  Part of YOUR job is to read the doggone listing, get a real address in your information (FedEx will not deliver to PO Boxes), and get your contact information correct.  New email address?  New phone number?

Here comes the mean grown-up stuff-- I do not accept FRIVOLOUS returns.  If you spend your rent money and then want it back, shop elsewhere.  I am not The Mall.  If you are chemically impaired, please shop in someone else's store.  Do I really have to say this?  Yes.  Get your address and telephone number into the system correctly.  If you make a purchase, hoping that I am mistaken and that you have really purchased a million dollar piece of artwork - only it happens the artwork is just what I have said it is - there are no returns.  

Those of you who are still reading --- have a good time.  If you see a correction I should make - tell me.  I don't always get it right and promise I won't snap your head off.