This is a big bowl, wide and expansive, a true signature piece to be displayed centre stage on a table!
The rim features carved wave patterns, a gentle nod to the movement of water and the long journey this timber has taken from ancient forest to peat bog to my lathe. These carved details offer a tactile experience, inviting the hand to explore the bowl’s edge while the interior remains smooth and generous. It’s a handmade wooden object that balances sculpture and function—an example of artistic woodturning shaped with respect for the material’s rarity.
Finished with carnauba wax, the surface retains its natural warmth and durability. There is no plastic, no synthetic varnish—only a natural product protecting a natural treasure. The bowl feels both ancient and fresh, a collectible wood art piece that can be used daily or displayed as a centrepiece.
Turning ancient swamp kauri is always an encounter with deep time. This fruit bowl began as a dense, shimmering piece of timber that had rested in New Zealand’s peat bogs for more millenia. When I brought it into my atelier here in Carcassonne, I felt the familiar weight of its history—quiet, patient, and full of stories waiting to be revealed.
Swamp kauri is among the rarest timbers available to artisans. Preserved naturally in oxygen-poor wetlands, it emerges with a golden glow that seems almost alive. Minerals absorbed over millennia create soft ripples and pearlescent reflections across the grain. As I turned this bowl, those patterns appeared gradually, shifting under the light like waves on calm water.
This particular piece carried several small natural voids—tiny pockets formed during the tree’s ancient life. Rather than hiding them, I chose to fill them with copper powder, creating delicate pinkish accents that contrast beautifully with the kauri’s golden surface. The copper catches the light in a way that feels both subtle and contemporary, adding a touch of refinement without overwhelming the wood’s natural beauty.
Owning a piece like this means welcoming a fragment of deep history into your home. If its quiet glow and copper accents speak to you, I invite you to explore the other swamp kauri works I’ve had the privilege to turn.
Diameter: 38cm Height: 9cm Weight: 520g
