A rare Elizabeth I/James I carved oak and painted boarded box, West Country, circa 1600-20

Each side with an extremely rare polychrome-painted motif, worked in shades of burnt umber, sienna and cream, and designed to echo the large quatrefoil-petal carved to each end of the front board, the carving highlighted with punched-decoration and with chip-carved ends to the frieze and hinged lid, minor traces of green-on-white block-printed lining paper

Any surviving staining/painting on late 16th/early 17th century British furniture is rare. When extant it is principally confined to an overall hue, or the highlighting of carved details. A stand-alone painted motif is extremely rare. The only other example I have handled on a piece of furniture of a painted motif designed in its totality directly onto a plain board, is on the sides of an impressive oak coffer, attributed to Somerset, circa 1600-10, which I sold whilst at Bonhams, London, March 2017, Lot 346 (£20,000). As found here, the painting related to the design of the coffer

For a boarded box with similar carved and punch-decorated flowerheads, again with printed paper lining, attributed to Salisbury and dated c.1620, see V. Chinnery, 'Oak Furniture: The British Tradition' (2016), p. 315, fig. 3:380a

• Height 33 cm / 13 "
• Width 80 cm / 31 "
• Depth 45.5 cm / 18"