Preliminary identification
Photo reference
5 uploaded photos
Overview
An authentic 1920s Chinese export Mahjong set featuring hand-carved bone-and-bamboo tiles, bone counting sticks, and direction markers in its original five-drawer wooden cabinet. The tiles display hand-engraved and polychrome-painted traditional suit symbols alongside Western Arabic numerals and letters added specifically for the 1920s Western craze.
Story
During the Roaring Twenties, America went completely mad for Mahjong, sweeping the game into high-society parlors across the globe. Made in China specifically for this Western boom, these tiles blend hand-carved Chinese calligraphy with Western letters.
Maker / Origin
Manufactured by specialized artisanal workshops in Shanghai, Ningbo, or Guangzhou during the peak export era of 1922–1927. These craft workshops employed skilled engravers who hand-carved each tile face out of domestic bovine bone before dove-tailing it to a bamboo backing.
Condition & Value
The tiles and counting sticks show minor age-appropriate patination and light wear. The wooden cabinet exhibits minor surface scuffs, missing its sliding front door panel, and minor brass hardware oxidation, which moderately reduces value.
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Comparable demand stays strongest where maker, originality, and venue confidence line up. Broader examples still trade, but the range tightens quickly when provenance, condition, or selling lane fit is missing.
Best Venue
Specialty auction or a focused dealer with buyers already in this lane.
Signed example with light edge wear and original frame.
Comparable format with stronger provenance and cleaner surface.
Smaller related piece with visible craquelure and trimmed margins.
Period match with softer condition and weaker subject matter.
Close market lane comp with similar material and presentation.