The above painted inscription on top of the box reads (as near as I can make out) "Kind friend (s?) be free and smoak with me" - so that the box is a small pocket box for pipe tobacco. If the inscription were not there many people would assume that the box is a snuff box, and would reason that it is too small to be a tobacco box. The answer I usually give to this line of reasoning is that if you examine eighteenth century clay pipes they have very small bowls, so that a lesser quantity of tobacco would be needed per smoke (or 'smoak') than is usual today, and I think this box gives the definitive answer to this.
P.s. This type of toleware was made in Pontypool, and at one time was usually referred to as Pontypool ware.
3 comments:
I knew it wasn't a snuff box, never thought of tobacco - d'oh!
You confirm my point for me Zoe. The box looks the wrong size for a tobacco box.
Me too. I dismissed tobacco for the reasons already mentioned. Just goes to prove that one should always go with first instincts.
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