{"product_id":"signed-cheese-board-with-real-strawberries-and-citrus-cast-in-resin-turned-wood-with-handle-c-1965-1980","title":"Signed Cheese Board with Real Strawberries and Citrus Cast in Resin, Turned Wood with Handle, c. 1965–1980","description":"\u003ch3\u003eThe Piece\u003c\/h3\u003e\n  \u003cp\u003eA round wooden serving board turned from a single blank, with a shaped handle rising off one side like a skillet's. The face is cut in three levels: a raised disc at the centre, a recessed channel ringing it, and a broad flat rim beyond that.\u003c\/p\u003e\n  \u003cp\u003eThe channel is the whole point. Set into it, alternating the whole way round, are \u003cstrong\u003ewhole strawberries and half-slices of citrus — real ones\u003c\/strong\u003e — flooded over with clear casting resin so they sit permanently under a glassy surface.\u003c\/p\u003e\n  \u003cp\u003eLook closely and there is no doubt they are real. The strawberries carry their actual seeds standing proud of the flesh in individual pits, with the green calyx and stem still attached and the shoulder curving the way only a real berry curves. The citrus slices show the segment walls, the fine radiating membranes, the pith, and along the rind a dense band of oil glands beaded up like bubbles. No mould reproduces that.\u003c\/p\u003e\n  \u003cp\u003eBoth have deepened with time. The strawberries have gone from red to a dark garnet-black, the citrus from yellow to warm amber, and the resin has taken on a faint gold cast that lets the wood grain glow through underneath.\u003c\/p\u003e\n  \u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe rim is signed in black\u003c\/strong\u003e by the maker.\u003c\/p\u003e\n  \u003ch3\u003eHistory \u0026amp; Provenance\u003c\/h3\u003e\n  \u003cp\u003eThis belongs to a specific and very well-defined moment. From the 1960s into the 1970s, clear polyester casting resin became widely available to studios and home workshops for the first time, and an entire craft grew up around it almost overnight: real flowers, leaves, fruit, coins, butterflies and insects suspended in poured plastic, made into paperweights, trivets, table tops, lamps, and serving boards exactly like this one.\u003c\/p\u003e\n  \u003cp\u003eThe material identifies itself. \u003cstrong\u003eThis is polyester resin, not modern epoxy\u003c\/strong\u003e, and the two age very differently: polyester ambers steadily over decades and traps a scatter of fine bubbles at the boundary where it meets whatever is embedded, and both are visible here. Modern epoxy stays near water-clear far longer and is formulated specifically to avoid that bubbling. The fruit itself has oxidised to near-black over many years, which is not something a recently made piece can imitate.\u003c\/p\u003e\n  \u003cp\u003eTaken together — polyester rather than epoxy, decades of ambering, and fruit that has darkened all the way through — the range is \u003cstrong\u003ec. 1965–1980\u003c\/strong\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n  \u003cp\u003eThe board is \u003cstrong\u003esigned\u003c\/strong\u003e on the rim in black, which places it as studio work rather than anonymous factory output. The signature is a short hand and we are \u003cstrong\u003enot attributing it to a named maker\u003c\/strong\u003e, because we cannot read it with enough confidence to put a name in print. There is no other mark, label, or stamp on the face, the rim, the handle, or the underside.\u003c\/p\u003e\n  \u003ch3\u003eProduct Details\u003c\/h3\u003e\n  \u003ctable border=\"1\" cellpadding=\"8\" cellspacing=\"0\" style=\"width:100%; border-collapse:collapse;\"\u003e\n    \u003cthead\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\" style=\"text-align:left; vertical-align:top;\"\u003eField\u003c\/th\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\" style=\"text-align:left; vertical-align:top;\"\u003eDetail\u003c\/th\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\u003c\/thead\u003e\n    \u003ctbody\u003e\n      \u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"vertical-align:top;\"\u003eObject\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"vertical-align:top;\"\u003eServing or cheese board with handle\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n      \u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"vertical-align:top;\"\u003eForm\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"vertical-align:top;\"\u003eTurned round board with raised centre disc, recessed decorative channel, broad flat rim, and a shaped projecting handle\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n      \u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"vertical-align:top;\"\u003eDecoration\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"vertical-align:top;\"\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eGenuine whole strawberries and citrus half-slices\u003c\/strong\u003e embedded under clear cast resin in the channel\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n      \u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"vertical-align:top;\"\u003eMaterial\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"vertical-align:top;\"\u003eLight close-grained turned hardwood; polyester casting resin\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n      \u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"vertical-align:top;\"\u003eMarks\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"vertical-align:top;\"\u003eSigned in black to the rim. Not attributed — the signature is not legible with confidence. No other mark or label.\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n      \u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"vertical-align:top;\"\u003eEra\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"vertical-align:top;\"\u003ec. 1965–1980\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n      \u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"vertical-align:top;\"\u003eCondition\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"vertical-align:top;\"\u003eVery good. The board is sound and flat with no cracks, splits, or warp, and the handle is solid and integral with no looseness. The resin is intact all the way round with no chips, lifting, crazing, or separation from the wood, and every piece of fruit is complete and fully encased. The wood is clean and warm with an even finish. Expect fine surface scratching across the resin and light handling marks to the rim and underside, consistent with use. The fruit has darkened and the resin has ambered with age, both of which are the natural behaviour of the material and are the character of the piece. Condition Guaranteed.\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n      \u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"vertical-align:top;\"\u003eAvailability\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"vertical-align:top;\"\u003eOne of a Kind — 1 Available\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n    \u003c\/tbody\u003e\n  \u003c\/table\u003e\n  \u003ch3\u003eWhy It Belongs in Your Home\u003c\/h3\u003e\n  \u003cp\u003eThis is a genuinely strange and wonderful object, and it does what almost nothing else on a table does: it stops the conversation for a second while somebody works out that the fruit is real. That is a rare quality in a serving piece.\u003c\/p\u003e\n  \u003cp\u003ePractically, the raised centre disc is built for a wheel of cheese or a round of pate, with crackers, grapes, figs or nuts going around it on the rim — the geometry was designed for exactly that job. The handle means it can be carried out and set down in one motion, and it swivels neatly on a table so it can be passed.\u003c\/p\u003e\n  \u003cp\u003eUsed flat it is equally at home as a display piece: on a kitchen shelf, propped in a plate stand, on an open dresser, or on a counter with the handle angled out. The amber and garnet against pale wood is a warmer palette than anything currently in production.\u003c\/p\u003e\n  \u003cp\u003eA note on care, and the resin changes the rules. \u003cstrong\u003eServe on it, but do not cut on it\u003c\/strong\u003e — a knife will score the resin permanently and once scored it cannot be polished back. \u003cstrong\u003eNever put it in a dishwasher and never soak it.\u003c\/strong\u003e Heat softens polyester resin and can cloud or lift it from the wood, and prolonged water gets under the edge of the casting and separates it. Wipe it with a barely damp cloth and dry it immediately, using a little mild soap only if you must. Keep it away from a hob, an oven door and direct sun: heat and ultraviolet are what age polyester resin fastest, and sun will push the ambering along and can eventually make it brittle. Never use any abrasive, scouring pad, or solvent cleaner on the resin. Once or twice a year give the bare wood on the rim and underside a wipe of food-safe mineral oil, keeping it off the cast surface. Set food on parchment or a cloth if it is oily.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Viridian Eclection","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":48030888820841,"sku":"VE-0673","price":138.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0651\/0093\/9369\/files\/44624F33-FC15-4684-91B8-3280A2C3F8DF.jpg?v=1789021214","url":"https:\/\/viridianeclection.com\/products\/signed-cheese-board-with-real-strawberries-and-citrus-cast-in-resin-turned-wood-with-handle-c-1965-1980","provider":"Viridian Eclection","version":"1.0","type":"link"}