Small Early 19th Century Scandanavian Folk Art Dome-top Box

A charming early 19th Century Scandinavian Folk Art dome-top box.

Retaining its original ochre painted surface with black line borders and applied engraved paper decorations depicting rural and domestic scenes. The canted form with gently arched lid is typical of provincial Scandinavian work of the early 19th Century. Decorated throughout with naïve vignette scenes including figures beside a stove, pastoral subjects and domestic imagery, the box has developed a wonderfully mellow surface and patina through years of use. 

With some areas of wear, rubbing and small losses to the decoration only enhance its authentic vernacular character, including the faded outline of a now-lost applied decoration to the front panel. The interior remains beautifully untouched, showing the original softwood construction. Circa 1800–1820.