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this large chop has a dark brown patina to the wax coat on the oval shaped base, very fine hand wrought details were given to each rooster, with 3 rounded characters of the seal
Chisel marks are present around the cheeks and combs creating a stipple effect to the carving. Under magnification, each foot was carved with a digital bone structure.
I hope one of the experts might be able to interpret the meaning of the seal and possibly explain its use

Size: H: 7 7/8"; 20.0 cm
L: 4 7/8"; 12.4
W: 3 3/8"; 8.6

Thank you for looking
Kind regards

Kevin

There are two main aspects to a seal like yours - the artist who carved the chickens on top, and the sealist who carved the printing image on the base. They are unlikely to be one and the same person.

Your seal possibly was originally one of a set of twelve carved stones featuring the twelve animals of the Chinese zodiac. The rooster is number 10 in the set. While the carving is of reasonable quality, I would not class this stone amongst the high grade stones otherwise available. The brown patina may well wash off with some detergent and brush.

The character on the base is the character Ji 雞 - which means 'chicken'. The way it has been carved - very shallow, and with the area where stone has been removed being flattened and even - generally indicates that this is a souvenir type of item rather that a serious seal.

I hope you are not too disappointed.

I value your opinion, and am grateful for the information, many thanks

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