What Could This Be?

So in yesterday's post I presented you with quandary:

I asked you to take a stab in guess at what the objects in the above photos do.

*And the only one that responded was Tara and her coworker - Thanks Tara and her coworker for playing along!!*

(*Note: speaking of photos, please excuses these. They are not my finest and in fact I am embarrassed I produced them. But, the lighting in my dining room is poor at best and this is all I have*)

The circular object on the left is a small dish. It contains something that the object on the right needs. The object on the right is ornately carved at the top and is made of a marble or stone. But, let's see them from a different point of view. I will open the small dish up and turn over the stone and you will find this:

This, my friends, is a chinese stamp and ink pad. Notice the engraving on the bottom of the stone?

Now, dip it in the red ink, which is a thick red paste. It has the consistency of.....well I don't know. I just know it is soft yet firm. It's different from our ink pads.

Anyway, so here I am stamping a piece of stationary....

And, voila!

Next question: have you ever wondered what your name looks like in Chinese?? So have I!

And today you get to see what my name looks like in Chinese because that is exactly what this stamp is: my name! Now, how fun is that??

My dad suggested I stamp my photos with this stamp. But, I'm not sure. I still need to figure that one out.

Anyway, now you know what this foreign object is... Happy stamping!