Three European Carved Bone Sewing Tools

拍品描述

Europe, England or France, ca. 400–800 CE. A trio of hand-worked animal bone implements assembled from the contents of a lady's sewing etui. The longest is a slender turned rod finished with a knopped, baluster-turned terminal above finely incised ring courses, serving as a bodkin, crochet hook, or knitting pin. The thinnest tapers to a fine point from a collared shoulder: a stiletto or piercer, used to open eyelets in cloth without cutting the weave. The smallest and stoutest is a socketed needle case body, now lacking its screw cap, its surface dense with banded chevrons, hatching, and a central lattice of crosshatched diapering. Warm honeyed patina throughout. Etui fittings were routinely separated and recombined by their owners, which explains why the carved cylinder speaks a decorative dialect distinct from its turned companions. Size of longest: 7.1" L x 0.25" D (18.0 cm L x 0.6 cm D). The etui, a small fitted case worn suspended from a chatelaine or tucked into a workbox, was the essential accessory of nineteenth-century needlework. Bone, cheap, close-grained, and kind to the lathe, was the workhorse alternative to ivory for its fittings, and prisoner-of-war and cottage-industry turners in England and France produced them in quantity. The stiletto earns its keep in whitework and broderie anglaise: pressed through a woven ground, it parts the threads rather than severing them, so the resulting eyelet can be overcast into a permanent opening. Needle cases of this socketed form typically took a threaded or friction-fit cap, and it is the cap, small and easily pocketed, that almost always goes missing first. SHIPPING: We coordinate worldwide shipping in-house through specialist international forwarders experienced with fine art and antiquities customs manifests. International buyers must confirm, prior to bidding, that their country's customs authority will accept the item. All duties, taxes, clearance fees, and any costs arising from customs delays, seizures, re-export, returns, or loss in transit are the buyer's sole responsibility. Artemis assumes no liability for items refused entry, detained, or lost after export. We cannot ship ancient items to their country of origin (Egyptian to Egypt, Greek to Greece, etc.).For those not using LiveAuctioneers' Live Ship program, Artemis Fine Arts offers expert in-house packing and worldwide shipping. With over 20 years of experience, our team provides careful, reliable, and affordable service. For a quick quote on this lot, please contact support@artemisfinearts.com prior to the auction, or call 720-890-7700. PAYMENT EXCEPTION: For clients not previously established with Artemis, payment for all gold, precious metal, and gemstone lots must be made by bank wire transfer or certified bank check/money order, without exception. Item #204551

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