ANTIQUE BOXES
at the Sign of the Hygra
2 Middleton Road
London E8 4BL
Tel: 00 44 (0)20 7254 7074
email: boxes@hygra.com
Antique Boxes in English Society
1760 -1900
by ANTIGONE
Tea Caddies and Tea
Tea Caddies and Tea

Home
e-mail
Contents		  
Up		  
Thumbs
News | Buying |  Contact us |  Online History of boxes | The Schiffer Book | Advanced Search
A Rare Rosewood Tea chest with twin cut crystal canisters Circa 1810.
A rosewood veneered tea chest of very superior quality, featuring early Regency decoration and shape.  The feet and handles are of strong neoclassical form. The chest is fitted with heavy crystal canisters.  The back is lined in leather, punctuated with silk tufts. This interior arrangement, which was very costly at the time, is rare. 

Circa 1810

The chest has a working lock and key.

The chest measures 8 inches  wide by  5.75 inches deep by 7.25 inches high; 20.25 cm wide by 15 cm deep by 18.5 cm high 

  
A Rare Rosewood Tea chest with twin cut crystal canisters Circa 1810. Please Click on image to enlarge
 
A Rare Rosewood Tea chest with twin cut crystal canisters Circa 1810

The rosewood is crossbanded with kingwood and edged with boxwood. The  tapering sides and the cavetto molding are of classical inspiration. 
 

 

A Rare Rosewood Tea chest with twin cut crystal canisters Circa 1810 A Rare Rosewood Tea chest with twin cut crystal canisters Circa 1810

 

 

 

 

A Rare Rosewood Tea chest with twin cut crystal canisters Circa 1810 A Rare Rosewood Tea chest with twin cut crystal canisters Circa 1810

 

 

A Rare Rosewood Tea chest with twin cut crystal canisters Circa 1810

The chest is rosewood crossbanded with kingwood and edged with boxwood, with pressed Lion mask drop handles to the sides and standing on cast claw and ball feet

 

 

A Rare Rosewood Tea chest with twin cut crystal canisters Circa 1810

The differences of the two canisters is interesting. 

Superficially they look the same. They are hand blown and then cut freehand. The stoppers are not interchangeable. There are also slight differences to the faceting. 

They are probably Irish. The tax on the weight of materials used in glass manufacturing in England and Scotland did not apply in Ireland until 1825. This resulted in the setting up of glassworks in various port towns in Ireland such as Waterford and Cork (1783). See: Irish Crystal
by Pat Friend

 

 

A Rare Rosewood Tea chest with twin cut crystal canisters Circa 1810

 

 

hygra8in09.jpg (101612 bytes)

I was able to undo the stuck stoppers by coating them with a mix of industrial alcohol (2 parts) glycerin (2 parts) and salt (1 part).  I smeared it thickly around the stoppers which came out easily after a few hours.

The recipe is given  in  Looking After Antiques . by John FitzMaurice Mills ISBN: 0852231792 

News | Buying |  Contact us |  Online History of boxes | The Schiffer Book | Advanced Search

 

For the historical context of this caddy read the relevant part of Antigone's Online Antique Box Book. If you click here you will go there.
 

  © 2002-2004  Antigone Clarke and Joseph O'Kelly