I recently came across a goban, albeit a little banged up, in an antique shop for a price I couldn’t resist… The shop owner doesn’t know much about it, just saying that someone who imports antiques from Japan and that’s where he got it.
Does anyone know what kind of wood this looks like? I’m interested both for curiosity, and because I’d like to clean it up a bit if possible.
I’ve heard waxing is about the best you can do, but I’d like to get some of the dirt off first. If anyone knows how best to go about this, any insight is also appreciated!
So far my best guess is some kind of spruce, since there are a lot of dents (I’ve heard spruce is soft) and there’s a nice sweet smell when you take the legs out.
There’s a stamped number on each leg too, but nothing distinguishing or that might help date it. The lines seem to be lacquer? They are definitely slightly raised.
I’ll post a picture of the bowls, in case I need to take special care cleaning those. They smell a bit musty so I’d like to do something while the stones are out for a rinse!
Quite a nice Japanese board. Not so old, not so used. Shinkaya or Kaya I can’t say.
Nothing special to do besides cleaning sweetly. Be careful with wax to not get it darker.
That’s an indication that the goban is made of Hon Kaya. Taking out one of the legs is one of two ways to tell, the other is to keep the board under a polownia lid for a while so the smell gets trapped in the box. The board is kind of dark though so my first thought was katsura. The dents hinted in that direction too. The goban seems to have had it’s share of use (and a bit of incidental abuse).
The surface can be cleaned and treated with camelia oil. Never use wax for that. Dust and dirt (from your hand and stones) gets stuck into it.
The bowls are made of kuri (chestnut) and they complement the goban well in age and use. It’s a very nice set. Enjoy playing it!
Good to know! It could well be katsura, when I say a sweet smell, I mean pleasant and woody/sap-like. Unfortunately I don’t have any first hand knowledge of just how ‘sweet’ true kaya smells
I had thought wax was the safest bet but maybe not? There is some residue in the cutout that suggests it has been waxed in the past, but oil may be better to bring it back to life a little (especially the top surface where the colour is duller)!
Would you wipe it down with a slightly damp cloth or anything like that before adding oil? There are a few marks which need a little (light) scrubbing to get rid of, but it already feels like I’m going into the finish of the wood with the test spots I tried cleaning…
There are also some deeper scratches on one of the legs which might be a bit much to correct (picture below) … Would these need staining, or a coat of oil would be enough to look a bit better?
My bad. The goban is indeed waxed, exept the surface. So sides, bottom and legs have been waxed and can be buffed up or cleaned and waxed again. A damp piece of cloth is safe to use. Be careful with the use of mineral spirits etc.
The smell of hon kaya is sweet and has been discribed (on the web) as vanilla or cinimaon. I would say vanilla-like
PS: I have to give the refurbishment of the feet some thought.
Interesting is it common to wax the bottom and sides but not the top of a goban? I did notice the top surface looks distinctly duller in colour, with the grain not so visible compared to the sides
Well, I’m not an expert but I have tried to gather as much information as I could. On the website of Maekawa, a Hon Kaya Go and Shogi board shop for over 40 years I read that the top of of the board is supposed to be treated with camelia oil. The rest of the board is waxed for protection. Using camelia oil will bring back the colour and shine of the surface.
