Object Type
The lid, sides and front of this writing box are inlaid with various woods. The inlay is characteristic of the work undertaken by Flemish immigrants in Southwark, south London, in the late 16th century, as exemplified in chests inlaid with architectural and geometrical ornament, and sometimes including figures in contemporary dress. The best-known example is the Offley chest in Southwark Cathedral, dated 1588.
Materials & Making
The box is constructed of elm and joined at the corners by large dovetails (fan-shaped projections at the end of one piece of wood that fit into similar-shaped slots at the end of another at right angles, to form a secure and tight joint). The base consists of three boards joined in the centre with tongue and groove (a projection along the length of one board fits into a groove along the next board, giving a firm join). The underside of the box shows evidence of hand sawing. Three holes at each of the corners indicate that it originally had feet. The interior is fitted with a till (compartment with lid) on one side. It is entirely lined with a paper, dated on the reverse 1615. This lining paper consists of re-used pulls (proof copies) for an edition of the antiquarian William Camden's Remaines of a Greater Worke, Concerning Britaine. The box retains its original fixings and later hinges. The lock is a later replacement although the escutcheon (metal lock plate) may be original.
Subjects Depicted
The box is decorated with heraldic ornament symmetrically disposed, including Tudor roses. The front of the box has three figures in late 16th-century dress. The ornamental birds and beasts derive from Edward Topsell's Historie of Foure-Footed Beasts (1607) and Historie of Serpents (1608).
Physical description
The lid, sides and front of the box are inlaid with various woods with heraldic ornament symmetrically disposed. This consists of Tudor roses; pairs of cocks; pairs of griffins; martlets; doves and geometrical ornament. The front of the box has three figures in late 16th century dress; the central figure is bearded. The interior is fitted with a till on the proper left side. It is entirely lined with a paper, dated on the reverse 1615, apparently re-used pulls for an edition of William Camden's Remaines of a greater Worke, concerning Britaine. The paper is wood block printed in black with a diaper of roses and stylized bell flowers. That on the lid has been patched re-using a sheet inscribed with a late 18th or early 19th century hand. The box retains its original fixings and later hinges which have been moved once to accommodate the shrinkage of the lid. The lock is a later replacement although the escutcheon may be original.
The box is constructed of elm, and joined at the corners by large dovetails, the base consists of three boards joined with tongue and groove in the centre. The underside shows evidence of hand sawing and three holes at each of the corners indicate that it originally had feet. The lid has lipped mouldings at the sides.
Place of Origin
Southwark (probably, made)
Date
1600-1625 (made)
Artist/maker
Unknown
Materials and Techniques
Elm, inlaid with maple, cedar, bog oak and Andaman padouk
Marks and inscriptions
"The box is lined with re-used test sheets for an edition of William Camden's (1515-1623) 'Remaines of a greater Worke, concerning Britain' (1615)"
Dimensions
Height: 255 mm
Width: 760 mm
Depth: 545 mm
Width: 775 mm (including hinges)
Dimensions checked: Measured; 08/09/1999 by F&W
Object history note
Probably made in Southwark, London
Descriptive line
Elm box. The lid, front and sides are inlaid with various woods with heraldic ornament symmetrically disposed. English, 1600-1625.
Bibliographic References (Citation, Note/Abstract, NAL no)
Box, of ash, inlaid with pearwood, holly and bog oak. The top is covered with a design of roses and various birds. On the front of the box are three male figures in late Elizabethan costume, with cocks and other birds, roundels and roses; the latter device is repeated on each side of the box with a conventional tree and birds. There is a pierced metal escutcheon on the front. The inside is fitted with a compartment with lid, and is lined with a hand block printed paper decorated with a diaper of Tudor roses and other patterns; the paper being sheets from Camden's 'Remains Concerning Britain,' dated 1615.
About 1600.
From catalogue H. 10 in., L. 2 ft. 6 ½ in., D. 22 in.
(H. 25.4 cm, L. 77.5 cm, D. 55.9 cm)
From: H. Clifford Smith, Catalogue of English Furniture & Woodwork
(London 1930), 586, Plate 25.
Labels and date
Box
English; about 1615
Elm, inlaid with maple, padouk, and bog oak, and lined with block-printed paper
W.17-1910
The lining paper is printed with a diaper of roses and flowers on the back of unused pulls for the 1615 edition of William Camden, Remaines...concerning Britaine. It is inlaid with a miscellany of motifs - birds, flowers, and figures - similar to contemporary embroidery, and to designs drawn by Thomas Trevelyon in 1616.
British Galleries:
INLAID TABLE DESK AND BOX
These two pieces were probably made by European joiners who settled in Southwark, south London. About 400 furniture makers from areas now in Germany and The Netherlands worked in London between 1511 and 1621. They specialised in inlay techniques which were fashionable in Northern Europe at the time.
Materials
Maple; Elm; Cedar; Bog oak; Padouk
Techniques
Inlay (process)
Subjects depicted
Doves; Cock (bird); Griffins; Tudor roses; Martlets
Categories
Containers; British Galleries
Collection code
FWK
