H: 6.5 in / 17 cm | W: 14 in / 35 cm | D: 10 in / 25 cm
Description
A Fine Writing Box
Retailed by Howell, James & Co
Constructed in coromandel, dressed with studded gothic style bronze strapwork; opening to reveal a beautifully fitted interior with chased and pierced metalwork incorporating a host of writing instruments; the lid fitted with Moroccan leather and velvet folio compartments and utensils, the lower register fitted with three engraved writing slates, an inkwell marked Berry’s Patent, and a box of matches; unfolding to reveal a writing slope with satinwood-lined storage. Bearing the retailer’s label of “Howell, James & Co / Regent Street, London.”
Circa 1870
Howell James & Co
Founded in 1819, Howell James & Co started their business as jewellers and silk merchants based in upmarket Regent Street in the West End of London. They were noted for the variety and quality of their stock, and by 1865 they employed well over 150 employees. They exhibited at the Great Exhibition of 1851, the 1862 International Exhibition and the International Exposition of 1867, Paris.
