A small hand-built vase with a good off-round lip and a soft turquoise glaze. The shape has not been fussed over, which is exactly why it works: you can still feel the push of the maker's hand in the pinched wall. Good with a single stem, good on a shelf, and just as good left empty.

The base is signed Minka Veal. We haven't traced the potter, so the name stays open. We'll note one nice coincidence: a Minka of the same name moved through Melbourne's mid-century art world, and it is almost certainly just that, a coincidence, but we like wondering. If anything solid surfaces, we'll add it.