Description:
TC600: A very fine penwork tea chest, of elongated octagonal form, the penwork depicting scenes from the Silk Road. Inside there are two lift out tea canisters and a cut glass Irish sugar bowl.

This is a truly stunning artwork. Although at first sight it appears to comply with the conventions of floral and Chinoiserie decoration, the arrangement and execution show the workings of a truly original mind.

In such work the larger panels are usually reserved for the main narrative scene, with the frieze decorated with floral or symmetrical designs. Here, the main body is painted with robust flora and the frieze is painted with figures in landscapes. The scale being long and narrow suggests a long road and implies a journey through the countries of the East: "The Silk Road".

Origin: UK; Circa 1820: Materials: Maple, mahogany, glass.

Size: It measures 12.1 inches wide by 6.2 inches deep and it is 6.4 inches high including feet: 30.8 cm wide by 15.7 cm deep by 16.2 cm high.
Condition: good overall, working lock and key, see images. There is a question about one of the lift out canisters. The penwork is exquisite!.

As each person has different criteria and antiques by their very nature have wear please enlarge the images and ask for extra information as needed.

The floral decoration draws on a multiplicity of traditions.

The composition is symmetrically arranged and it features acanthus leaves making reference to neoclassicism. There is however a richness and exuberance in the flowers bursts through the restraints of neoclassicism.

The details and sumptuousness of the flowers are reminiscent of 16th century European embroideries. The centre is punctuated by a shell, suggesting both nature and classicism.

A classical looking vessel holds another shell which forms the escutcheon. This is not symmetrical, with a hint at rococo. It is a witty and whimsical way to mark the centre of the panel and create a keyhole.

The Tea Chest open to reveal two canisters and sugar bowl.

Going around the frieze: Starting from front, /stage right. How do you describe these objects: Building Chinese roof exaggerated curves. Flying bird. Man hat wearing with stick . Who dresses like this? The man is leading a loaded horse/camel. He is followed by a loaded man, yoke balanced. The benefit was the neck massage. These were important things being carried. I would love to see someone dressed like this at a party. This building has a thatched roof. It is at the side of a widened river. On the other side of the river a larger building with a tiled roof. The flora/plant-life in the foreground is proportioned for visual effect rather than the actuality. An elephant tusks afore, collared , man on head, harnessed to carry a shaped object, with precarious man following u . Elephant looks complicit:; agriculture, gentle, basked flowers, man seeding with buildings in background. Kneeling in work, being tender to plants. Oriental buildings in background . Man on horse, sword in hand,... to be continued below....

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Going around the frieze: On the corner a man on horse wearing three-cornered hat, sword in hand, horse on two legs, the man looking heroic, three-cornered hat. , Chinese roofs; a man wearing an oriental hat sits aloft a camel. The saddle seems to be decorated to look like a shield. Others are gathered on the road, which meets a river bank; one seems to be waving. A dog is running at the river edge. There is a boat out on the river. Another group approach. An outrider on horseback is followed by two others sitting in a covered wagon. On the corner there is an archer with full quiver on horseback. The short side shows a traveler crossing a hump back bridge with oriental buildings in the background. On the corner a man leads an elephant.

Please click on images to enlarge

This is a truly stunning artwork. Although at first sight it appears to comply with the conventions of floral and chinoiserie decoration, the arrangement and execution show the workings of a truly original mind. In such work the larger panels are usually reserved for the main narrative scene, with the frieze decorated with floral or symmetrical designs. Here, the main body is painted with robust flora and the frieze is painted with figures in landscapes. The scale being long and narrow suggests a long road and implies a journey through the countries of the East.

The floral decoration draws on a multiplicity of traditions. The composition is symmetrically arranged and it features acanthus leaves making reference to neoclassicism. There is however a richness and exuberance in the flowers bursts through the restraints of neoclassicim. The details and sumptuousness of the flowers are reminiscent of 16th century European embroideries. The centre is punctuated by a shell, suggesting both nature and classicism. A classical looking vessel holds another shell which forms the escutcheon. This is not symmetrical, with a hint at rococo. It is a witty and whimsical way to mark the centre of the panel and create a keyhole.

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The large floral and small man and beasts theme continues around the box.

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End view. A composition of stylized robust flowers arranged in a wreath with a flower in the center.
Some of the flowers make an attempt at neoclassical designs such as anthemions (honeysuckle).

The back of the Tea Chest. The flowers on this panel are not symmetrically arranged and the details on them like the dots, diamond patterns and lines, are much more in the tradition of embroidery design.

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The end view. Here the flowers appear to be more like English flowers, perhaps wild. The artist explored different flower painting in virtuosity.

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The top reverses the form of the front by having the main picture in the centre, framed by a garland of flowers. These flowers are painted in a precise controlled way, but still retain a delicacy which implies a naturalness and delicacy.

The top picture is rooted in the chinoiserie tradition with figures in a landscape with small pavilions and flowers which make no concessions to perspective. Although there are signs of wear, the picture has not lost any of its whimsical charm. I have seen other versions of this theme depicted on another box.
See: Hygra: A Regency Penwork Three Compartment Tea Caddy circa 1820.

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Detail of scene with oriental figures. It appears to be a meeting/parting. The man is sitting in peculiar fashion on a peculiar horse who appears to have the neck and face of a camel. The horse must be an attempt at illustrating reports of the strange breeds of the East. There is a design on the cloth hanging from the saddle which could be a coat of arms, a design for rank, or some other distinguished mark.
The scene suggests traveling on an open road with a forward movement.

One of the figures lifts his hand perhaps in farewell greeting.

A river runs to the right.

Water was a very important element in the reports of the early travelers. A small boat adds interest in this busy scene and a small dog adds an extra note of interest and movement.s

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A small bridge with a figure ready to cross. Buildings in the background. In typical chinoiserie fashion there is no rhyme or reason as to size. The palm tree undulates alarmingly, the flowers are gigantic compared to the tiny buildings which are not so far.

Figures pointing to the fruit high up. The leaves on some of the plants are as large as the people, in keeping with reports of strange, huge plant life.

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Reaching for the coconuts/papayas? on a strange looking hybrid plant straight out of someone's fertile imagination encouraged by often exaggerated reports of exotic trees. Another person ready to catch.

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Another tree with what looks like a bamboo trunk and huge ginkgo leaves, perhaps the result of a report of wild ginkgo growing in China. The leaves on the ground are huge suggesting orgiastic jungle growth.

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More exotic fruit, durian/bread fruit? on a sparsely leafed tree.

All these vignettes are delicately drawn, each one drawing attention to different details of oriental life as perceived in the early 19th century by people who informed themselves by third party reports and artwork.

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Detail of the escutcheon showing the original and whimsical way the keyhole has been created. The acanthus leaves look as if they are metamorphosing dolphins, a neoclassical motif employed here with great subtlety and artistry.

Detail showing the sureness of hand. The leaves and flowers are drawn and shaded with precision and sensitivity. The confident undulations of the acanthus leaves, the curves and fine lines of other flora are evidence of true artistry.

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Bringing game to the reclining figure.

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The lids are decorated with Grecian urns and delicate-wild?- flowers in a mixture of neoclassicism and naturalism.

The bowl in place, set in the surround decorated with forget-me-nots.

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The crystal bowl is of exceptional quality. It is deeply cut and very heavy. Many of the bowls were manufactured in Ireland.

The underside of the canisters.

The interior of the canisters showing remnants of the original foil. The inside of the two canisters looks identical.

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There is a question here:

I have documentary evidence that one of these lids is a reproduction of the other, it came with the chest.

and from the pictures it is obvious.

No one but the utterly slavish would copy losses in the one reproductively on the other.

A card inside the caddy implies that one of the canisters is reproduction of the other, and Anne Isaac is responsible, or takes credit. is the provenance itself not genuine!

"Painted by Miss Ann Isaac"

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The underside showing original cloth cover.

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This escutcheon is wonderful in its whimsy.

A classical looking vessel holds another shell which forms the escutcheon. This is not symmetrical, with a hint at rococo.

It is a witty and whimsical way to mark the centre of the panel and create a keyhole.

Please click on images to enlarge or | slide show |thumbnail index | Request current list of available tea caddies.

All text and images and linked images are © 1999-2013 Antigone Clarke and Joseph O'Kelly. If you require any further information on permitted use, or a licence to republish any material, email us at copyright@hygra.com