AMAZING EARLY 1930s {ART NOUVEAU-GOTH?} TREASURES BOX 

SCULPTED & PAINTED GESSO ON WOOD CARCASS

I've avidly collected boxes of myriad types, materials, sizes and origins since the mid-1960s, and evaluated countless thousands of antiques and decorative arts continuously for four decades.  This keepsake box unquestionably ranks stylistically among the most remarkable and uniquely creative.  So much so, that placing the carved decorative elements in historic context is (inconveniently) impossible.  Equally eye-catching is the gilt-bronze with verdigris paint treatment.  The sole pedestrian element of this box is the commercial hardware.

Oral family provenance places the TREASURES box in a South Dakota homestead founded by a Scandinavian family ca. 1910.  The box was reportedly made for a beloved child as a Christmas gift during the height of the Great Depression.       

          

Original throughout and exceptionally well preserved, absent significant damage.  Loss of paint at top left corner of the cover sole evidence of age and use.   

   

4.5" high, 7" wide at handle grips, 4.25" deep

1.3 lbs.

Conscientiously packed and shipped via Priority Mail