A Small 17th/18th Century Spanish Antique Folk Art Carved Coffer

A charming and intriguing small carved coffer, naïvely yet vigorously worked throughout with a rich devotional and folk-art iconographic programme, possibly Spanish and dating to the seventeenth or early eighteenth century.

The hinged top is carved with the figure of a pope flanked by foliate roundels, while the front panel bears a crescent moon and a group of three figures (depicting the flagellation of Christ), centred by a heart-shaped escutcheon. The lower frieze is carved with a chalice surmounted by a pair of confronting figures and a cockerel, and the sides continue the scheme with further religious figures, moons and cockerels. The interior retains its original candle box, and — most appealingly — the underside of the lid is carved with Christ carrying the Cross.

The combination of motifs is characteristic of vernacular religious furniture: the chalice and the figure of the pope speak to a Eucharistic and ecclesiastical context, the cockerel carries its familiar Passion association with Saint Peter's denial, and the crescent moons lend a distinctly folk, almost talismanic, note. Carved by a confident if untutored hand, the whole has exactly the honest, idiosyncratic quality that makes folk art of this kind so collectable.

A diminutive and decorative survivor, intricately carved on every visible surface, with the warm colour and mellow wear of age.

Provenance: Most probably Spain. 17th/18th century.

Material: Walnut.

Condition: A good and well-carved coffer, intricately carved throughout, with minor surface wear and losses commensurate with age, and an old patch repair to the backboard. Structurally sound, retaining its original candle box and hinged lid.

Dimensions: 26¾in wide x 20½in high x 16in deep (68cm x 52cm x 40.5cm)