Holly Boxes

A good quality Georgian 18th century mahogany rectangular tea caddy having replacement brass axe drop handle to hinged lid enclosing cavity with attractive inlaid decoration throughout. Tea was of course a very precious commodity throughout the 18th and 19th centuries and the purpose of a tea caddy was not just to preserve the and extend the life of the precious tea leaves...

A very handsome George III tea caddy, made from Mahogany and beautifully inlaid with panels and highly decorative foliate marquetry to the front and top. The top has a handsome cast ...

PRESENTING A LOVELY 19th century Anglo-Indian Carved Teak Wood and Sadeli Mosaic Box, featuring a carving of a Hunt Scene. Made circa 1870 in Bombay, India during the Rule of the Br...

PRESENTING a LOVELY 19C Anglo Indian Bombay MOP (Mother of Pearl) Sadeli Mosaic Trinket Box from circa 1875-85. Gorgeously detailed and hand-crafted ‘sadeli mosaic’ inlay, from the Bombay Area, with deep greens with silver, pewter, mother of pearl, bone and ebony in geometric patterns. The box case, is made of sandalwood but completely covered in MOP, bone, faux ivory, ebony and mosaic inlay. Edged with faux ivory and banded with a different pattern of sadeli mosaic. Some minor damage to the top (repair is obvious in pics) and ivorine replacements to some edging, but it still a BEAUTIFUL BOX and of real QUALITY! The mosaic work is FABULOUS! Box opens to reveal its original blue velvet lining. It sits on 4 (recently added) silvered button feet. SADELI MOSAIC: “Anglo Indian boxes were made in India for the English residents from the early part of the 18th century. They were brought back or sent back to England usually by the people who had commissioned them. From the beginning of the nineteenth century they were imported more commercially, although not in any significant numbers until the middle decades. They were very highly valued, especially the early ones, to the extent that the designs were copied on late 19th and early 20th century tins. The ancient art of Sadeli Mosaic is said to have been introduced from Shiraz in Persia via Sind to Bombay, a long time before the Anglo Indian boxes were made. It was a technique, which required a high degree of skill and patience. It was executed very lavishly, in that the frequent cuts wasted a great amount of the precious materials used. The workmanship was however more than commensurable to the value of the materials. Ivory, silver, pewter (or other metals), wood and horn were cut into faceted rods which were bound together to form geometric patterns. When the glue has set, the rods were sliced in transverse sections. This gave the maker a number of angled circular pieces in the original pattern. Several variations of patterns could be achieved by combining the materials in different ways. The ivory was sometimes dyed green to give an extra color. The mosaic pieces in a combination of patterns, often separated by ivory, ebony, horn or silver stringing were used to veneer sandalwood boxes. In the early boxes, which date from the turn of the 18th to the 19th century, there are large panels of mosaic covering tops and sides of boxes. It took incredible skill to cover such large areas without any shakes or wavering of the pattern. The corners and joins on these boxes are impeccably matched. The makers (reputed to be Persian) of Sadeli mosaic made in the first two decades of the 19th century displayed a total understanding of the qualities of the different materials they used. They combined substances, which can expand and contract according to atmospheric conditions with others, which are hard and unyielding. The result was a sharp definition of the lines and patterns, which made up the whole design. On the early boxes the designs look deceptively simple. The fact is, they emerged from a culture, which had mastered geometry and understood how to generate a pattern from a set number of points. The patterns are so harmoniously combined that their incredible complexity is not immediately apparent. The earliest Sadeli boxes...

1950s Anglo Indian Micro Sadeli Mosaic Inlaid Jewelry Box. DIMENSIONS: 7ʺW × 7ʺD × 2.5ʺH. Indo Persian Moorish style micro mosaic inlaid jewelry box with lid. Intricate inlaid Anglo ...

Oval Tea Caddy with Silver Mounts From our Tea Caddy collection, we are delighted to offer this Georgian Silver and Tortoiseshell Tea Caddy. The Tea Caddy is of oval shape with a Tortoiseshell exterior mounted with engraved silver stringing, a silver shield plaque below the silver escutcheon and a silver looped handle. The interior features a floating tea shelf...

Large Anglo Indian Moorish Islamic style micro mosaic inlaid jewelry box with lid. Intricate inlaid Anglo Persian box with floral and geometric Moorish Sadeli design in an hexagonal shape form with micro mosaic marquetry, very fine artwork. Museum collector piece like the one in Doris Duke Islamic Art Museum. The repeating geometric patterns of Sadeli Mosaic are what give it beauty and richness. This decorative technique is a type of micro mosaic featuring repeating geometric patterns. Dimensions: H: 5 in : 12 in W x 12 in. D. Circa 1950s. Sadeli mosaic art is a highly skilled craft, it has had a long history in India and the Middle East with early examples dating back to the 16th century. In the 1800s, it became popular as a decoration on a variety of boxes, card cases, and chess boards imported from India. Since Bombay became a center of making them, they became known as Bombay boxes. The ancient art of Sadeli Mosaic is said to have been introduced from Shiraz in Persia via Sind to Bombay, a long time before Indian boxes appeared. The designs on early boxes look deceptively simple. The fact is they emerged from a culture which had mastered geometry and understood how to generate a pattern from a set number of points. The patterns are so harmoniously combined that their incredible complexity isn’t immediately apparent to the viewer. Will look great in a Moroccan decor...

Wonderful writing box made from a tropical hardwood Fabulous shape and plain fluted carving. It gives it a modernist appearance Probably Sri Lankan 3 secret drawers* Replaced lea...

With Tuscan Columns & Fan Inlay. From our Tea Caddy collection, we are pleased to offer this Georgian Harewood Tea Caddy. The Tea Caddy of octagonal shape with a Harewood veneer...

Circa 1790-1810 period Georgian tea caddy made from Mahogany. The tea caddy has been used well and loved over many centuries. The top has a brass ring with which to lift the lid. ...

An exceptional, fine and impressive antique Georgian English sterling silver locking tea caddy; an addition to our silver teaware collection. This exceptional antique Georgian sterling silver tea caddy has an oval form. The surface of the tea caddy is plain and unembellished, with an applied reed decorated border to the upper and lower rims. This antique silver tea caddy retains the original hallmarked domed flush hinged cover; the flush hinge indicates the fine quality of this piece. The cover is surmounted with the original and exceptional silver topped oval button style finial. This antique Georgian tea caddy...

A large English tea caddy. It is mahogany with brass feet.