Intricate English Late Regency/Early Victorian Penwork Tea Caddy c. 1820-1850

An elegant English Late Regency/Early Victorian “penwork” tea caddy of octagonal form, circa 1820-1850. Finely decorated with gilt botanical motifs on a dark “japanned” ground. The hinged lid opens to a fitted interior retaining its removable tea compartment lid with matching penwork decoration and turned bone handle.

The interior is lined in original period paper decorated with a repeating fleur-de-lis motifs, a fashionable neoclassical pattern widely used in early 19th-century English tea wares. The brass hinges and presence of the flour-de-lis lining strongly suggests the interior remains original.

The amazing penwork (or japanned) technique, popular in England during the Regency period, consisted of drawing designs directly onto the wood using a fine quill pen and black India ink.  Skilled artists drew freehand, while others might lightly trace or transfer designs from pattern books, botanical prints, or popular publications. The “Inversion (Reserve) Technique” was used to to create the “ivory-on-ebony” look, artists would draw the outlines of the figures and patterns, then blacken the background around them with ink, leaving the natural light wood to represent the motifs. Very fine hand-drawn gilt designs using pen or brush are drawn on the entire surface in intricate detail, then sealed for durability. The floral and scrolling ornament reflects Regency taste for botanical engraving-inspired decoration.