Hardwood Bottles

Late Victorian carved wood oval box. Stupendous antique oval desk box, created in England during the late Victorian period, circa 1880. The beautifu...

Antique handcrafted Moroccan jewelry wooden box with camel bone inlay trunk. A large early 20th century decorative Moroccan camel bone casket with bra...

Of all the glassworks produced in the late 19th century, cameo glass was the most challenging to perfect. Only a handful of artisans succeeded in mastering this intricate craft, with the firm of Thomas Webb & Sons standing out as the most accomplished. Webb’s cameo...

A very cool midcentury mosaic and wood lidded box, circa 1960s. The piece is in very good vintage condition with some wear and patina. #1444.

A mixture of finely powdered tobacco, herbs, and spices, snuff was introduced to China in the 17th century by Western diplomats. Initially reserved for ranking members of Qing-dynast...

Our snuff bottles are topped with gemstone grade agate lids and 100% hand painted from within. The Chinese art of églomisé uses a very thin bamboo brush with a few strands of hair to...

A mixture of finely powdered tobacco, herbs, and spices, snuff was introduced to China in the 17th century by Western diplomats. Initially reserved for ranking members of Qing-dynast...

Material: wood 180 cm high 100 cm wide and 72,5 cm deep Completely restaurated, see 1 picture from unrestaurated condition Originating from Burma +/- 120 years old Material: T...

A small yellow and blue art-glass perfume bottle, signed and dated. A striking blend of two glass tones: a rich, yolk-like yellow glass forms the majority of the bottle, contrastin...

This rare cameo glass perfume bottle is the work of the inimitable British glassmakers Thomas Webb & Sons. Entirely handcrafted, the piece is a testament t...

A scarce fine quality antique silver-inlaid solid brass betel nut box (Lutuan), dating to the second half of the 19th / early 20th century, hand-crafted in Mindanao, Philippines. Boxes such as this were used to store the areca nut (also known as the betel nut) which would be wrapped in a betel leaf with lime paste and other ingredients, often tobacco, for chewing. Similar to the European tea caddy, these boxes often served as a way to impress while showing off ones wealth. Betel chewing was prevalent in the southern Philippines as in much of the rest of Southeast Asia. Wealthier Maranao families on Mindanao were able to afford elaborate silver-inlaid brass betel boxes such as this example. Such boxes were used to show off to guests and from which they were offered betel and the other component such as leaves and lime to make up the betel quid. Rare large size, most extant examples of such boxes tend to measure around 5 inches in length. At slightly more than 7.75 inches the example here is larger than most. The distinctive decorative box features a very heavy strong-box like rectangular shaped chest form with canted corners, copper handles, and a conforming hinged lid, lifting open to reveal an interior divided into three compartments covered by four hinged lids. Each of these doors is inlaid with silver in stylized orchid flower patterns. Exceptionally executed throughout, the arabesque silver inlaid exterior is decorated to the top with a large orchid motif within scrolling obid-obid (stylized rope) borders. The front, back and sides are inlaid with sets of stylized tail feathers of the sari-manok bird beneath which are unusual, highly stylized whimsical zoomorphic faces that appear like cat or tiger faces. (Such stylisation is accounted for by Southeast Asian Islamic preferences to avoid the overt and this potentially idolatrous representation of animal and human forms. Designs such as these are drawn from a local design repertoire that has its origins in wood carving. Although the spread of Islam in the Philippines began in the 14th century, mostly through the influence of Muslim merchants from the western Malay Archipelago, decorative arts in this design remain exceptionally rare. This lutuan represents a fine example of Islamic metalwork from the most eastern outreach of Islamic art and civilisation: Mindanao island being significantly further east than even China – artwork from Islamic Southeast Asia remains chronically under-represented in the world’s major collections of Islamic art. PROVENANCE / ACQUISITION Acquired from highly reputable auction house, Austin Auction Gallery, established 1983, Austin, Texas. References Brownrigg, H., Betel Cutters...

This is a good Chinese Export snuff bottle, made from porcelain and hand painted in cobalt blue, dating to the mid 20th century, circa 1940. This piece is well potted with a balus...