Rare WESTERWALD miniature hand warmer / flask in the form of a book, 1650 - 1700

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Rare WESTERWALD miniature hand warmer / flask in the form of a book, 1650 - 1700:
$2500.00

PRECIOUS AND FEW!!

We are proud to present this unrecorded, unbelievable Westerwald saltglazed stoneware miniature flask or hand warmer in the form of a book (theBible?); decorated in blue and manganese with love hearts in the corners of the panels and with imitation clasps resembling the silver originals that a realbook would have possessed; Germany, Westerwald region, circa 1650 - 1700.

This is a truly unbelievable find. If you have a major collection of Westerwald this will be a must-have addition to your collection.Examples of these spirit flasks are known in Delftware (see Lipski and Archer Dated English Delftware pp .420 - 422). The known dated delftwareexamples range from 1658 to 1710. Clearly our amazing little Westerwald flask is based on the delftware examples, so we can be confident of a date within this range. Archer calls the delft examples \'hand warmers\'.

Like our example, the delft hand warmershave a hole in the top for fillingwith liquid. Archer suggests that although there is no firm evidence how they were used but it is plausible thatthey were hand warmers, filled with hot waterand held in the palm of the hand or between the hands in cold weather. They could also have been used spirit flasks although the size of ourexample suggests this function is less likely.

Archer also remarksthat one delftware example, decorated with a heart, could well have been given as a love token or gift. The presence of little molded hearts on ourexample could confirm thesuggestion that is was also intended as a gift, maybe to a much-loved small child, since the tiny size of the flask makes it unlikely that it wasintended for an adult.

The size, as you can see from the photos, is truly amazing, measuring only 2 1/2 inches tall. It is perfectly molded in the form of a leather book with \'clasps\' that imitate the silver clasps on real books of the period. There are little hearts in the corners of the panels and these could suggest that it was given as a gift, maybe to a child or young woman. There is a hole at the top for filling with liquid and this would have been closed with a cork.

The condition is excellent apart form a chip on one corner and the opposite top edge on the same side (see photographs). It would be easy to have this restored by a top restorer if so desired. We didn\'t want to interfere with such an important historical object and decided toleave any restoration to the ultimate buyer.

I have not been able to find a comparable seventeenth century toy or miniature flask in any of the relevant literature, whether it be in delftware or saltglazed stoneware. And I can find no similar flask, albeit normal size or miniature / toy in Westerwald salt-glaze, so this is an incredibly rare survivor, the like of which you are probably not going to come across ever again. It is certainlyone of the star items we have ever had the privilege of offering our collectors and dealers on and we anticipate a huge amount ofinterest. Don\'t wait until the last moment until placing your offer or you could be disappointed!

Thank you for looking and offerding on this unrepeatable museum quality offering!

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