Roughly fashioned polychromed softwood miniature trinket box of rectangular form. Domed lid hollowed out underneath and ends fitted with conforming caps. Wire hinges and wire loop at front with missing tin hasp. Corresponding wire loop for hasp on box front. Box sides constructed of rabbet joints secured by two wood pegs at front and two at back. Beveled bottom board attached with two pegs and extends beyond box sides. Top and four sides each have a floral motif of dark green, cream, ochre and red all on a tan ground. Glossy varnish overall except for bottom and interior. Indecipherable initials painted on bottom.
Probably Lancaster County
Provenance
Purchased by donor at Lancaster County sale. At least four other examples known. See example in collection #1973.003.2
Possible maker is Peter Brubacher (1816-1898), shoemaker and woodworker in Clay Township.
Trinket box of softwood constuction covered by German newsprint outside and a coarse blue-green paper inside. Glued over the newsprint are strips of straw of various tones arranged in geometrical designs on domed lid and sides in a technique very similar to marquetry. Newsprint visible on underside as well as where straw pieces are missing. Lid has hinge of coarse linen under laminate. Bent wire hook on lid fits into wire loop on box front.
Provenance
Collected by donor in Lancaster Co. According authority Clarke Hess, these boxes are plentiful, but not usually with newspaper lining. Clarke owns two of these boxes, both with Lancaster German language newsprint, and believes these boxes were made 1820-1840 in PA.
John Tannehill, expert in iron, reports someone told him these boxes were made in prisons.
Framed hand towel. One large embroidered panel with pelicans. Two-inch panel of loose weave linen added to bottom,decorated with wide band of red cotton with sawtooth edges . Main panel is bleached plain weave linen. Embroidered decoration is done in red cotton, now faded to dark pink.
Panel is 13" high x 16.5" wide, with a symmetrical design except for the initials and date. Embroidered stylized heart at top center with two interior stars and smaller interior heart. At upper corners of panel are large flowers above a decorated branch, under which are large, facing pelicans, each feeding 2 young birds with blood from their pierced breast. At bottom is a small heart motif flanked by facing birds. To the right of this motif is "1808" and to the left is "A C" and "W I".
Conserved Nov. 1997 by Dorothy McCoach of Bethlehem, PA.
Yellowish stains around edges. Discoloration above initials. Pencil marks in upper right corner. Darned diamond pattern in bottom panel has a few minor "pulls". Bottom extension detaching at two points.
Mounted in frame by Lancaster Galleries.
Object ID
G.97.39.2
Credit
Gift of Hampton Randolph, Sr., Heritage Center Collection