Jamaican Colonial Engraved Tortoiseshell Comb-Case with Two Combs, Dated 1670

View Similar Items

Antique American Coin Silver Hand Engraved Card Case with Chatelaine

Large Copper Engraved Map of the Coastline of Friesland and Terschelling, c.1670

Two Engraved Copper Plaques by Briadens Limited Engravers Toronto

Early 20th Century Indian Colonial Silver Engraved Presentation Padlock 1912

Original Antique Map of Switzerland, Engraved By Barlow, Dated 1807

Antique Sterling Silver Miniature Engraved Vesta Match Case Birmingham 1886

Spanish Colonial Religious Wood Carving Icon, Christ Crucified with Two Thieves

Engraved 'Cape of Good Hope' Colonial Commemorative Glass, 18th Century

Cigarette Case red lines and and hand-engraved finishing Salimbeni

Map of Friesland with Terschelling, Vlieland, Ameland En Schiermonnikoog, C.1670

Antique American Hand Engraved .900 Fine Coin Silver Albert Coles Card Case

Very Unique Austrian Silver & Enamel Cigarette Case by Kurzer & Wolf, Dated 1916

Want more images or videos?

Request additional images or videos from the seller

1 of 6

Jamaican Colonial Engraved Tortoiseshell Comb-Case with Two Combs, Dated 1670

$66,161.51List Priceper set

About the Item

An extremely rare Jamaican engraved tortoiseshell comb-case with two combs Former British Jamaica, circa 1670, inscribed and dated ‘Sarah Henly, JAMAICA 1670’, probably by Paul Bennett of Port Royal The case of rectangular form, one side with a central panel depicting an indigenous tropical flower, beneath the wording ‘Sarah Henly’ within an undulating indigenous flower border, the reverse with a similar panel with the wording ‘JAMAICA 1670’ within a matching border. The case with an original silver clasp encasing one double-sided fine comb and one single-sided coarse comb, each engraved with various indigenous flower heads and scrolling foliate motifs. H. 19.5 x W. 12.5 x D. 0.6 cm Provenance: Acquired by a lady collector from the Cambridge antiques trade sometime in the late 1950's or early 1960's, thence by descent After England’s conquest of Jamaica from the Spanish colonist in 1655, Port Royal developed into a large city and the thriving commercial centre of (the then archipelago) Jamaica. However, this all ended when a massive earthquake devastated the city and swept two thirds it under the sea in 1692. Combs made of various materials such as ivory, wood and horn, were quite common in medieval and early modern England and a well-known status symbol. These tortoiseshell combs are objects created from familiar forms to reflect new cultural structures in a quickly changing society. Taken home after the ‘colonial adventure’ as mementoes of Jamaica, they proved their owner’s worldliness and newly gathered fortunes by being a perfect balance between the ‘exotic’ and the familiar, thus being a tool to obtain a higher social status upon arrival. The narrow-toothed comb probably was intended for extracting lice and the wide-toothed comb for fixing wigs but was perhaps not to be used, but to be placed in a kunstkammer or some room alike. The Institute of Jamaica in London has eleven tortoiseshell combs, one large box with combs and one powder box. The first comb for the Institute of Jamaica in London was purchased by members of the West India Committee in 1923. It was described by H.M.Cundall in the West India Committee Circular (1923) as “probably one of the earliest art objects made in the British West Indies displaying European influence.” The tortoiseshell works in the Jamaica Institute’s collection are thought to be from the hands of two craftsmen working in Port Royal between circa 1671-1684 and 1688- 1692, respectively. The present case with combs, dated 1670, is the earliest recorded, dated example and is linked to the first group. Philip Hart, in his article Tortoiseshell Comb Cases, for the Jamaica Journal (November 1983), reveals that recent research found an Englishman called Paul Bennett, in Port Royal, listed in 1673 as a comb maker. Therefore it’s likely that Bennett was the maker of this first group and an apprentice or assistant of him was the maker of the second group. Other works supposedly by Paul Bennett include the Sir Cuthbert Grundly comb-case, dated 1672, a round powder box lid and comb case in a private U.S. collection, dated 1677, and the ‘Lady Smith’ casket, which is considered the artist’s masterpiece. The Hawksbill Turtle’s shell was a widely used material and can be regarded as plastic avant la lettre, having the ability to bend when heated. These turtles were common in the oceans until hunted down almost to extinction, only to be (successfully) protected in the 20th century. This set is a beautiful but poignant expression of a painful cultural moment. Bought with wealth generated by enslaved Africans, it embodies the English appreciation of Jamaica’s glorious natural history and the simultaneous savaging of it. For a comparable circular powder box with a domed lid inlaid with a few pieces of mother-of-pearl, three silver mouldings around the box and the lid, and engravings of indigenous flower heads and scrolling foliate motifs, see: Uit Verre Streken, June 2012, no. 4. Literature: Philip Hart, ‘Tortoiseshell Comb Cases: a 17th century Jamaican Craft’ in Jamaica Journal, the quarterly journal of the Institute of Jamaica, Vol 16, No 3 (August 1983) ?.

Dimensions:
Height: 7.68 in (19.5 cm)Width: 4.93 in (12.5 cm)Depth: 0.24 in (6 mm)
Sold As:
Set of 3
Materials and Techniques:
Silver,Tortoise Shell,Engraved,Hand-Carved,Limed
Place of Origin:
Jamaica
Period:
17th Century
Date of Manufacture:
1670
Condition:
Wear consistent with age and use. Minor losses. A few losses to the combs, but for such a fragile object in extremely good condition.
Seller Location:
Amsterdam, NL
Reference Number:
1stDibs: LU5458229625172

More From This Seller

View All

Engraved 'Cape of Good Hope' Colonial Commemorative Glass, 18th Century

Located in Amsterdam, NL

A commemorating glass with an engraving of a farmer ploughing, an East Indiaman and a text reading: Het Lan’s Wel Varen An De Caap (the country’s prosperity at the Cape of Good Hope...

Category

Antique 18th Century South African Glass

Materials

Glass

Engraved 'Cape of Good Hope' Colonial Commemorative Glass, 18th Century

$11,909

Free Shipping

Fine 17th Century Dutch Colonial Armorial Tortoiseshell & Silver Box, Dated 1691

Located in Amsterdam, NL

A dutch tortoiseshell box with two engraved silver plaques Amsterdam, 1691, with maker's mark of Steven des Rousseaux (1654-1733) H. 5 cm Diam. 12.5 cm Note: Steven des ...

Category

Antique 17th Century Dutch Sterling Silver

Materials

Sterling Silver

Fine 17th Century Dutch Colonial Armorial Tortoiseshell & Silver Box, Dated 1691

$36,088

Free Shipping

A colonial tortoiseshell veneered casket with silver mounts

Located in Amsterdam, NL

Possibly Spanish colonial, 17th century H. 15.2 x W. 25.1 x D. 12 cm Included is a hand-written letter, reading: Ik Ondergetekenden verklare bij dezen, dat mijn Wel en Begeerte is...

Category

Antique 17th Century Mexican Antiquities

Materials

Silver

A colonial tortoiseshell veneered casket with silver mounts

$13,713

Two Dutch Colonial Tortoiseshell Bible Boxes with Silver Mounts, 18th Century

Located in Amsterdam, NL

Tortoiseshell and silver H. 5 x W. 22 x D. 12 cm Tortoiseshell and silver H. 4.3 x W. 17 x D. 9.5 cm The function of bible boxes in the Dutch East Indies was just as much a status symbol, to show off one's wealth on the way to church, as it was to hold a small bible or hymnbook. Bible boxes existed in gold, silver, ivory, sometimes inlaid with precious stones, and in Coromandel or ebony wood. In the Dutch East Indies on the way to church, the women tried to display their fortune by the costliness of her bible box. The highest-ranking women had gold bible boxes, inlaid with precious stones, carried by a slave. The lower-ranking women had wooden bible boxes as the present ones. In 1754 Governor-General Jacob Mossel decreed that only the wives and widows of a Governor-General, Director General, Councillor of India or President of the Justice Council, were allowed to carry golden boxes...

Category

Antique 18th Century Sri Lankan Dutch Colonial Vases

Materials

Silver

Two Dutch Colonial Tortoiseshell Bible Boxes with Silver Mounts, 18th Century

$11,427 / set

Free Shipping

An Indian colonial tortoiseshell veneered teak portable two-door cabinet

Located in Amsterdam, NL

Mughal India, Gujarat, 2nd half 17th century H. 22.4 x W. 30.3 x D. 26.8 cm This small cabinet has six drawers behind two doors. Originally ordered by the Portuguese, and made afte...

Category

Antique 17th Century Indian Antiquities

Materials

Tortoise Shell, Teak

An Indian colonial tortoiseshell veneered teak portable two-door cabinet

$30,073

Colonial Silver VOC 'East-India Company' Ingot

Located in Amsterdam, NL

A silver 'V.O.C. AMSTERDAM' ingot circa 1738, with monogram and the assay mark of the Amsterdam Grill family With V.O.C. monogram and the A for Amsterdam. L. approx. 15.5 cm Weight approx. 2000 grams Note: The ingots were salvaged in 2004 from the wreck of the VOC indiaman Rooswijk, equipped by the Amsterdam VOC Chamber. The Rooswijk sank on its second voyage to the Dutch East Indies off the English coast on the Goodwin Sands...

Category

Antique 18th Century Dutch Historical Memorabilia

Materials

Sterling Silver

Colonial Silver VOC 'East-India Company' Ingot

$15,638 / item

Free Shipping

Antique Mid-19th Century American Collectible Jewelry

Materials

Silver

Antique American Coin Silver Hand Engraved Card Case with Chatelaine

$450

Large Copper Engraved Map of the Coastline of Friesland and Terschelling, c.1670

Located in Langweer, NL

Antique print, titled: 'Dominii Frisiae Tabula, inter Flevum et Lavicum (…)' This large copper engraved map details the coastline of Friesland and Terschelling. At east is a part...

Category

Antique 1670s Maps

Materials

Paper

Large Copper Engraved Map of the Coastline of Friesland and Terschelling, c.1670

$856 Sale Price

20% Off

Two Engraved Copper Plaques by Briadens Limited Engravers Toronto

Located in San Francisco, CA

Two Engraved Copper Plaques by Briadens Limited Engravers Toronto 5" x 9.5" x 1"

Category

20th Century Historical Memorabilia

Materials

Copper

Two Engraved Copper Plaques by Briadens Limited Engravers Toronto

$475

Early 20th Century Indian Colonial Silver Engraved Presentation Padlock 1912

Located in London, GB

Antique Early 20th Century engraved Indian colonial unmarked silver and steel presentation padlock 1912. Engraved “Kasiram . Das, Institution Katwa 1912 FCR” the reverse “A. N. Mober...

Category

Early 20th Century Indian Paperweights

Materials

Silver

Early 20th Century Indian Colonial Silver Engraved Presentation Padlock 1912

$980

Original Antique Map of Switzerland, Engraved By Barlow, Dated 1807

Located in St Annes, Lancashire

Great map of Switzerland Copper-plate engraving by Barlow Published by Brightly & Kinnersly, Bungay, Suffolk. Dated 1807 Unframed.

Category

Antique Early 1800s English Maps

Materials

Paper

Original Antique Map of Switzerland, Engraved By Barlow, Dated 1807

$40

Free Shipping

Antique Sterling Silver Miniature Engraved Vesta Match Case Birmingham 1886

Located in Portland, OR

A good antique late Victorian engraved sterling silver vesta match case, George Goodman, Birmingham, 1886. This miniature vesta case is profusely engraved on all sides with a floral ...

Category