Antique Norwegian Tine (Bentwood Box), Blue Painted with Rosemaling, Dated 1902

Oval bentwood box, called a tine in Norwegian and a svepask in Swedish, the traditional Scandinavian lidded container used to store and carry food and small household goods. Butter, flatbread, and cheese traveled in these to market and to summer farms, and a finely painted one was a prized possession. Decorated and dated examples were often given as gifts for a betrothal, wedding, or christening, which is why they're sometimes called marriage boxes, though not every dated tine marked a marriage.

Built from a thin sheet of wood steamed and bent around an oval base, with a fitted lid that locks under two carved uprights and lifts by a bentwood bow handle. The bent seams are laced together with thin strips of wood threaded through drilled holes, the old handwork method used before nails and glue, and one of the clearest signs of age on a piece like this.

Painted deep blue with rosemaling, the folk floral style of rural Scandinavia: a stylized red and white flower on each side, sunburst rosettes on the lid, and yellow line borders following the rim.

The underside of the lid carries an old handwritten ink inscription with a name, a place, and the date 1902.

Dimensions
8" x 4" x 4.5"

Condition
Sold as found. Paint wear and losses throughout, heaviest at the rim, handle, and lid edges where the piece was handled. Old surface soiling and scattered knocks. The wood is sound, the lid seats, and the handle is firm.