Deep-carved square gaming counter depicting a man who shows a sign with four Chinese characters to a seated man on the right. We have not been able yet to decipher these characters. On the left is a man who seems to be waving. The intricate armorial belongs to Buller family of Somerset, Shillingham and Morval in Cornwall, England and shows a Moor’s head above a quarter-pierced shield decorated with a cross of four eagles. On both sides of the crest are men of which one seems to be talking to the other. The border on the front is decorated with plum flowers and bats. Plum flowers have five petals which represent ‘Longevity, Wealth, Health, Love of Virtue and a Peaceful death’. The bat (Fu) stands for ‘Blessings’. The border on the back shows berries of the evergreen plant ‘Rohdea Japonica’ (Wannianqing) which is a pun for ‘ten thousand years’. It is interesting that typical Chinese puns were used for the decoration. This stunning counter dates from the Daoguang period (道光 1820 – 1850). Width 4.7 cm. Height 3.3 cm. Thickness 0.21 cm.