a fine bamboo brushpot (bitong) 17th century

the cylindrical vessel carved with openwork detail depicting the narrative of 'Wang Zhi meeting the Immortals', the two Immortals seated and pursuing a game of weiqi while the woodcutter Wang Zhi observes, leaning on the handle of his axe, all situated under the canopy of an arched pine tree and surrounded by rockwork, the brushpot standing on low bracket feet, the wood of a reddish-brown color and with very deep patina, fitted wood stand (2)

Walter E. Lutz, 'Bamboo Brushpots', Arts of Asia, September - October 1975, pp. 26-27.
Selections from the Lutz Bamboo Collection, Denver Art Museum, Denver, 1979, cat.no. 41, p. 33.

The patina is very deep. Old vertical age cracks throughout. Approximately holes, but difficult to ascertain if all worm holes or are parts of the openwork carving.
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Walter E. Lutz, in his 1975 interview with Arts of Asia, describes this brushpot as one of the highlights of his collection. The caption to the illustration states that the "fine patina is a result of smoke and handling."

Wang Zhi and the two Immortals is a Jin dynasty tale of the woodcutter Wang who happened upon two elderly men in the mountains playing weiqi. They invited him to watch and provided him with food and drink. When Wang left and returned home, he discovered that hundreds of years had passed. He subsequently returned to the mountain and attained enlightenment.

Compare a similar brushpot illustrated in Simon Kwan, Ming and Qing Bamboo, University Museum and Art Gallery, The University of Hong Kong, 2000, pl. 21.