Workbox thumbnail 1
Not currently on display at the V&A

Workbox

before 1880 (made)
Artist/Maker
Herjeebhoy, Framjee (maker)
Place of origin
Bombay (made)

This workbox was intended to be used for needlework, and is designed to accommodate all of the accessories associated with this pastime. The exterior is decorated with sadeli, a geometric micro-mosaic composed of various woods, metals and ivory, arranged in patterns as a veneer over the wooden carcass. Such work was much practised in western India, especially in and around Bombay, for which reason such objects were described under the blanket heading 'Bombay boxes'.


Object details

Categories
Furniture
Woodwork
Containers
Needlework Accessories
India Museum
Object type
Workbox
Parts
This object consists of 22 parts.

  • Pin Cushion
  • Spool Lid
  • Spool Lid
  • Spool Lid
  • Spool Lid
  • Spool Lid
  • Work Box
  • Key
  • Spool
  • Spool
  • Spool
  • Spool
  • Spool
  • Spool
  • Thimble
  • Lid
  • Lid
  • Lid
  • Lid
  • Lid
  • Tray
  • Mirror
Materials and techniques
sandalwood, silk overlaid with pierced ivory within borders of sadeli, ebony and ivory; silvered-brass mounts
Brief description
Workbox, sandalwood partly carved, Bombay, before 1880.
Physical description
Workbox of sandalwood, partly covered with silk overlaid with pierced ivory, within borders of sadeli, ebony and ivory, with silvered-brass lock and hinges. The two back feet are missing.
Dimensions
  • Height: 11cm
  • Length: 26cm
  • Depth: 18.5cm
Marks and inscriptions
'Bombay Local No. 81 / Name. / Box (Ivory openwork) / Rs. 30 / Place of Production } / Presidency of Bombay / Collectorate. / City of Bombay / Exhibited by Framjee Herjeebhoy / of Bombay, to be sold at the close of the Exhibition.'
Object history
Acquired by the India Museum before 1880, possibly at the Universal Exhibition, Paris of 1855 or 1867.

Transferred from the India Museum in 1879.
Subject depicted
Geometric Patterns
Summary
This workbox was intended to be used for needlework, and is designed to accommodate all of the accessories associated with this pastime. The exterior is decorated with sadeli, a geometric micro-mosaic composed of various woods, metals and ivory, arranged in patterns as a veneer over the wooden carcass. Such work was much practised in western India, especially in and around Bombay, for which reason such objects were described under the blanket heading 'Bombay boxes'.
Bibliographic references
  • Jaffer, Amin Furniture from British India and Ceylon: A Catalogue of the Collections in the Victoria and Albert Museum and the Peabody Essex Museum. London : V&A Publications, 2001. 416 p., ill. ISBN 1851773185, p.326, pl.144.
  • Bryant, Julius and Weber, Susan, John Lockwood Kipling: Arts and Crafts in the Punjab and London Newhaven: Yale University Press, 2017 p. 542, cat. 191
Collection
South & South East Asia Collection
Accession number
02271:1 to 17/(IS)

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Record createdJuly 25, 2005
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O114346/workbox-herjeebhoy-framjee/
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