Antique Austrian Box Leather Book with Little Girl Image Gold Decoration and Lettering
Description: A wonderful and rather unusual box made of leather and cardboard in the form of a book. The box's cover has a central colored print of a young girl holding a rose within a golden bezel. Surrounding the image is the title of the book in tooled gold lettering. The title of the book reads what we believe says "Susse Gestalten eine neue jahr ogefd richte". We believe it translates to Suzie Creates a Judgment for the new year?? This is truly the best we could come-up with. Anyway, the bottom of the cover reads Wien 1884 which is Vienna (the capital of Austria) 1884. All of which is in a depression in the center of the cover and having raised corners decorated with gold metal designs applied to the top of the cover. The corners decoration is ormolu gold metal designs. The back of the book is plain having no decoration except for some tooled lines. The sides of the book are in red coloring with golden floral design. The box has a clasp to keep it closed. Once opened the inside is a box with a lid having a cloth pull. The entire interior is covered with paper having a repeating design of dots and lines connecting them. We are uncertain if the box is made of cardboard or wood, but we do not think this matters. Please see photos as they are part and parcel of our description.
Date: Late 1800 to early 1900's possibly earlier.
Origin: Austria.
Size: The base measures ~7” by 8 3/8" and is ~1 1/4" in thickness. The box weighs about 14 ounces.
Maker: Unknown.
Marks: Unmarked as to the maker.
Distinguishing Characteristics - Most Interesting About The Piece: This is definitely a nice box, which would make a great conversation piece.
Condition: Box is in very good condition with no cracks, breaks, or repairs. It has general wear to the surface especially at the edge of the spine. It also has a few stains to the surface which show as darker spots. The inside has minor soiling but nothing to worry about. Finally when handled the leather leaves a bit of brown dust on your hand, which we believe can be stabilized with a coat of leather cream. However, we will leave that to the new owner. The hinge is intact and the box closes well. All in all, a wonderful piece to add to your collection. Please see photo to appreciate its beauty and condition.
In Closing: Definitely a nice piece worthy of a spot in your box collection.
