A Pair of Multi-tier Woven Bamboo Baskets

The pair of baskets is round and has three tiers that sits on a shallow tray with a long bamboo handle that goes over the top of the basket from the bottom of one side of the tray to the bottom of the other side of the tray forming an upside down U  shape. A long piece of metal is affixed protecting the bamboo handle from unraveling. A C shaped metal pull is affixed centrally of the metal protected handle. 

The tray is shallow and is decorated with 6 elongated  begonia shaped openings that have the open carved images of foliage. 

Each tier is made of weaving two different sizes of bamboo strips together to form a round container. The large flat strips are placed side by side forming the longitudinal warps that are stationary and the finer strips serve as the transverse weft threads that are drawn through and inserted over and under the warp. On both the top and bottom of each tier of the bamboo basket. a large band of bamboo goes around the edges hiding the ends. 

Small bamboo and metal nails are used to stabilise the woven bamboo structure and keep it from unraveling. 

In addition, the inner top borders of each tier is recessed and protruding a bit allowing the next tier to sit securely on top.  

On top of the third tier sits an additional circular band of weaving. The traverse weft bamboo strips are inserted over and under the longitudinal warp only once coming back up across the top going onto the next warp creating little diamond shaped windows in the patterns of the weave.  This pattern allows ventilation. 

The cover of the basket is made similarly by inserting fine thread size strips over and under traverse strips to form a circular boarders with a closed top made of joining a few pieces of lacquered bamboo together.   The top of the basket cover is lacquered black with the Chinese characters 齋誠至潘 written in golden brown ink. 

An upside down fork shaped metal is affixed and wrapped up the lower section of the bamboo handle on both ends. The bamboo handle extends from the bottom of the tray and goes over the cover of the top tier coming down to the bottom on the other side of the tray 

The upside down U shaped handle is made of three long flat strips of bamboo secured with metal nails. Half way up the handle, another piece of metal plate in the shape of the good-wish cloud motif is affixed to station the bamboo strips on both sides. Additionally, the upside down U is wrapped with a large piece of metal that is decorated with the good-wish- cloud motifs on both ends.