Description:
JB523:  Antique box veneered in strongly figured  coromandel,   by Hunt and Roskell, London. The box  has  brass edging,  central inlaid and engraved brass plaque, countersunk brass carrying handles, and a  working  Bramah lock with  key. The compartmentalized interior of the box is  also of very high quality.  It is lined in velvet and embossed leather and has a lift-out tray.  There is a document wallet in the lid. Circa 1870.

Origin:  UK London Circa:  1870.

Size: 38cm wide by 29 cm by 17.5 cm:  15 inches  wide by 11.4 inches by  6.9 inches.

Condition: see pictures; good overall. Some veneer cracking which does not effect the box structurally, working lock and key.

Please click on images to enlarge

The box  has  brass edging which contrasts with the rich colour of the coromandel. This also helps to protect the edges of the box.

The patented Brahma lock was used on high quality boxes. To engage, the key is pushed into the lock. The sprung  levers of the lock are brought to the right positions by grooves cut in the barrel of the key rather than the flag.  This results in a very neat small key. The lock plate is stamped  J T Needs 128 Picadilly Late J. Bramah 124 Picadilly. 

J.T.  Needs held Royal Warrants from Queen Victoria and King Edward VII.  

Bramah’s business was acquired by J. T. Needs & Co in 1871.

The box has an engraved brass plate which reads: HUNT & ROSKELL  Jewellers to the Queen
156, New Bond St. London

Robert Roskell, Allan Roskell and John Mortimer Hunt (Hunt and Roskell) were the last of the dynasty of celebrated silversmiths, which began with Paul Storr's company, Storr & Co.,  in 1819. The chronology is as follows: 

Storr & Co (Paul Storr) 1819 - 1822 
Storr & Mortimer 1822 - 1838 
Mortimer & Hunt 1839 - 1843 
Hunt & Roskell 1843 - 1897 
acquired by J. W. Benson 1889-  Hunt and Roskell Ltd 1897 - circa 1965. 

The compartmentalized interior of the box is  also of very high quality.  It is lined in velvet and embossed leather and has a lift-out tray. 

The catch holding the document wallet in the lid is released by pressing one of the tennons in the lock plate.

The compartmentalized interior of the box is  also of very high quality.  It is lined in velvet and embossed leather and has a lift-out tray. 

A

There is a document wallet in the lid. Circa 1870. The document wallet is made from embossed dark blue leather and lined with silk.