The Hygra Antique Boxes at the Sign of the Hygra
2 Middleton Road, London, E8 4BL, UK.
(by appointment only)   
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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

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An important and monumental Anglo Indian Vizagapatam black buffalo horn tea chest Circa 1835.
 

 

 An important and monumental Anglo Indian Vizagapatam black buffalo horn tea chest the horn fluted and framed by engraved horn panels,  standing on turned and carved horn feet  the inside contrasting having twin lift-out  sandalwood  canisters  with incised and lac filled hinged ivory lids, flanking a cut crystal bowl. Circa 1835.

Working lock and key.


It measures  inches 14.25 wide  by 7.9 inches deep and it is 9  inches  high including feet: 36.2
cm wide by 20 cm deep by 23 cm high.

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See:
Anglo Indian

 Anglo Indian Sewing Box

 

An important and monumental Anglo Indian Vizagapatam black buffalo horn tea chest Circa 1835. 
An important and monumental Anglo Indian Vizagapatam black buffalo horn tea chest Circa 1835. 

Detail of the top. It is turned and carved in four pieces, centering in a concentrically turned middle suggesting a stylized flower.  

An important and monumental Anglo Indian Vizagapatam black buffalo horn tea chest Circa 1835. 
Detail: The engraved horn is a most unusual feature. Although engraved ivory is found on many pieces, engraved horn is exceedingly rare. It has a delicate and fine quality and its effect is like old lace. Perhaps its very subtle appeal made this work the prerogative of the most discerning of connoisseurs and as a result very few such pieces were made.

The horn is attached to the structure with both glue and little pins made of horn. The way the engraving crosses the joins in pieces of horn indicates that the decoration was added after the chest was made. 

The foot is complex, being both turned and carved.

 

 

The fluted panels of horn are fielded with further pieces of incised horn. Incised horn is rare. 
 An important and monumental Anglo Indian Vizagapatam black buffalo horn tea chest Circa 1835.
An important and monumental Anglo Indian Vizagapatam black buffalo horn tea chest Circa 1835. 

For comparison see:

http://www.hygra.com/aitc.htm 

and in our book:

Antique Boxes, Tea Caddies, and Society -- 1700--1880, ISBN: 0764316885  Antigone Clarke & Joseph O'Kelly, A Schiffer Book for collectors

Antique Boxes, Tea Caddies, and Society -- 1700--1880, ISBN: 0764316885  Antigone Clarke & Joseph O'Kelly, A Schiffer Book for collectors..

 
An important and monumental Anglo Indian Vizagapatam black buffalo horn tea chest Circa 1835. 
The back. 
An important and monumental Anglo Indian Vizagapatam black buffalo horn tea chest Circa 1835. 

 The inside contrasts with the outside having twin lift-out  sandalwood  canisters  with incised and lac filled hinged ivory lids, flanking a cut crystal bowl.

Sandalwood is immediately recognizable by its perfume which it retains for hundreds of years.

An important and monumental Anglo Indian Vizagapatam black buffalo horn tea chest Circa 1835. 
The Canisters have one side tapered so that they fit the chest exactly. This would have added to the complexity of making.
An important and monumental Anglo Indian Vizagapatam black buffalo horn tea chest Circa 1835. Cut glass tea caddy bowl. 
The bowl  is deeply cut.

It is the original heavy hand blown crystal mixing bowl. 

 

An important and monumental Anglo Indian Vizagapatam black buffalo horn tea chest Circa 1835. 

An important and monumental Anglo Indian Vizagapatam black buffalo horn tea chest Circa 1835. 

The canisters retain most of their original leading. Even the lid is made of several different pieces of wood and ivory.

The ivory is decorated by being engraved depicting scrolling flowers and leaves. Black lac fills the incised ivory giving contrast. 

An important and monumental Anglo Indian Vizagapatam black buffalo horn tea chest Circa 1835. 

An important and monumental Anglo Indian Vizagapatam black buffalo horn tea chest Circa 1835. 

 
An important and monumental Anglo Indian Vizagapatam black buffalo horn tea chest Circa 1835. 
News | BuyingContact usOnline History of boxes | The Schiffer BookAdvanced 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.
References:
See Antique Boxes Tea Caddies Society 
See: Furniture from British India and Ceylon Amin Jaffir
See:
Luxury Goods from India: The Art of the Indian Cabinet-maker Amin Jaffer 2002

Other Anglo Indian boxes:

Below are some Anglo-Indian- boxes I have documented on our site. It is becoming increasingly hard to find examples which have survived with their integrity  

A sandalwood  box of basket form veneered with porcupine quills framed with incised and lac filled ivory having a horn handle and standing on turned horn feet. Anglo Indian Vizagapatam circa 1850.  753SB: An Anglo Indian Vizagapatam radiating faded black buffalo  horn of dramatic curved shape Circa 1835 737SB: Anglo-Indian, Vizagapatam, box in the form of a basket, the wooden frame covered in porcupine quills, framed in ivory which is incised and decorated in black lacquer, with a horn handle. It stands on turned horn feet. Circa 1850.     743SB: Anglo-Indian (Vizagapatam) box in wood covered in horn, of sarcophagus form, with a segmented radiating  top culminating in a turned and carved floral finial. An Indian interpretation of English Regency aesthetic. This is a small box which shows absolute mastery of design. Circa 1840.     SB536: A sandalwood basket veneered in horn and ivory. Although such baskets were a popular Vizagapatam design, this one is very unusual in that it combines both solid ivory panels incised and lac filled in traditional plant motifs and fretted ivory work. Furthermore, the central cartouches are engraved with representations of Indian deities and not floral designs which was the normal decoration on such baskets. It stands on lion paw feet. The handle is decorated with scrolling flowers in characteristic fashion. Circa 1870.    SB421: Anglo Indian basket form box veneered with ebony and inlaid with Sadeli mosaic having an ebony handle and standing on turned ebony feet the inside lined with sandalwood. circa 1840.   TC135: An important and monumental Anglo Indian Vizagapatam black buffalo horn tea chest the horn fluted and framed by engraved horn panels,  standing on turned and carved horn feet  the inside contrasting having twin lift-out  sandalwood  canisters  with incised and lac filled hinged ivory lids, flanking a cut crystal bowl. Circa 1835.   885JBAI: Antique rare first period Anglo Indian box veneered all over with <I>Sadeli</I>mosaic Circa 1800 width=  

 

We have written a highly illustrated book on Antique Boxes and Tea caddies which is being published by Schiffer Books USA.  

  © 2004 Antigone Clarke and Joseph O'Kelly