Gilt Lacquer Wood Manuscript Storage Box Burma 19th Century

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Gilt Lacquer Wood Manuscript storage box Burma 19th century.
This wooden box is entirely covered in moulded lacquer-work in relief … Read more Gilt Lacquer Wood Manuscript storage box Burma 19th century.
This wooden box is entirely covered in moulded lacquer-work in relief (known as thayo work) and gilding (gold leaf) and has been inlaid with small pieces of glass backed with red, green and blue (a process known as hman-zi swei-cha).
The top lid decorated with two animals dragons figure.
Amazing handwork, gilt wood adorned with small pieces of mirrors, hand made of teak wood, gold leafed and rhinestones
The interior is decorated with red lacquer.
As might be expected, there are some losses to the applied thayo work, and some of the inset mirrored glass inlay has also been lost.
REFERENCES
Most probably used to hold valuable personal objects.
Fraser-Lu (2000, p. 172) illustrates a box with similar decoration which served as the jewellery box of the consort of the last Burmese king, Queen Su-hpaya-lat.
Fraser-Lu, S., Burmese Lacquerware, White Orchid Books, 2000.
Isaacs, R., & T.R. Blurton, Burma and the Art of Lacquer, River Books, 2000.
Than Htun (Dedaye), Lacquerware Journeys: The Untold Story of Burmese Lacquer, River Books, 2013. See less