Late 19th century Tramp Art box, circa 1880, a large footed box with pyramidal form built from graduated layers of sawtooth cut wood laid down on top of thin boards, in original mellowed paint finish, and interior with moss green paper lining. This is a large example of its type and is quite commanding in appearance. The box was strongly made and remains in excellent condition.
Such Folk Art boxes, frames and even furniture became referred to as "Tramp Art" following an article by Frances Lichten published in Pennsylvania Folklife in 1959. Using "waste materials" like discarded cigar boxes and wooden matchsticks, employing simple tools like pen knives, chisels and coping saws, the items were actually made by local craftsmen around the country (and elsewhere in the world). The art form has often been thought to have originated in certain sections of rural Germany...
Category
Late 19th Century American Rustic Antique Softwood Primitives