Rare Folk Art
Sunburst Paint Decorated
Spice or Valuables Box   

Southeastern Pennsylvania, ca. 1820-1840.

Original folk art paint decoration on a very precisely made pine sliding-lid box with inner divider. With the sunburst being the principal decoration, the box has bittersweet/red and yellow-green pigments on what was originally a robin’s egg blue ground, now mellowed to a blue-gray with a hint of green, depending on lighting.

In 19th-century Pennsylvania German traditions, sunbursts weren’t just decorative elements, they were believed to symbolize vitality, energy, and the sustaining power of the sun to ward off evil and to bring blessings and good fortune to the homes or farms where they were displayed. The gifting of this box had special meaning to the maker and to the recipient.

Joinery by tiny wooden pegs and cut nails. Superb original condition. Fine dry surface. Just 6 ¾ inches long x 3 5/8 wide x 2 1/8 tall. Scratch inscribed underneath “JOHN H HOLT”, probably an early owner.