Thread: Blackwood Book Chest

Hummm ... So I don't want an exact copy. What I need is the box layout, some scrollwork, etc... to hold the books.

Really what I am trying to do is get a box built for the wife that looks as pretty and is of Australian materials. It would be nice to have a carving on the door that signifies Australia.

Michael, I don't think we misunderstood your question I just think the sad answer here is that nobody knows of anybody who does this sort of work today.

I have occasionally seen low relief Australiana carvings on some old pieces in antique malls but generally the quality of execution is quite poor. I'm no expert on my furniture dating but I think the style belongs to the post Federation early 1900's and went through to the 20's. Often kangaroos turned out looking like rats and emus look like I don't know what! It must be hard to do and it's often not a good look.

After the 30's depression it seems to me Australiana lost its following. The most common things I associate with Australiana through the 50's is kitchenalia, breadboards and things, some with a little carving but most with poker work. I'd say during and after the 50's Australiana was taken over by the aboriginal motifs.

I don't think the box is veneered, I think the pictures are just highlighting the fiddleback in the blackwood.

I had a look at the carvers forum and Bob(Echidna) had posted a link to a New Zealand site where somebody was displaying this carved style of work http://www.mikesphotos.woodwork2006....co.nz/?SRC=PHP

... but thats not Australia

Obviously Bob's already got the interest, give it a go, he offered!

Fuzzie, going by the horizontal grain orientation of the entire door, the stiles must be veneered. The box was a gift in 1901 so it was likely made in 1900.

There is also a shallow relief carving on the side of the box which is not very clear and the pic isn't high enough quality to blow it up enough to see it clearly. It seems to be a portrait of a man & woman within a wide decorative border

Theres at least half a dozen forum members who could make such a box using this one as the inspiration. It's not a particularly difficult piece. If I were to undertake the commission I would most likely make 3 boxes, A prototype, then 2 final pieces. The first proto would be out of pine etc to get proportions right. The 2nd box might be the bees knees so a 3rd one wouldn't strictly be necessary but I'd like to keep a copy myself, hence the 3rd box.

Shallow relief cravings on the sides may be interesting as they could depict different Aussie aspects, eg possibiliteies may include
A carving of the HMS Endeavour or HMS Sirius (flagship of the first fleet) on one side
A Goldrush scene on the otherside
Aussie animals on the front panel with say a Kangaroo & Emu & a Koala
One concept may be a layout similar to the formal coat of arms with the Koala taking the place of the shield

Based on nominal timber thickness of 3/4", I estimate the finished box to weigh around 13 to 14kg so priority international postage should be around au$210

What a wonderful idea for a gift! A very thoughtful one, she is a lucky girl

I personally do not like furry animal carvings in wood usually. I much prefer carvings of a botanical nature, or of creatures that would be normally seen on wood, like geckos or frogs. The box could be made with a floating panel for the carving, and solid figured timber for the rest. Perhaps an inscription with the makers name and the inspiration written inside somewhere.

I hope you get your wish and get the box made.

Donna

Ahhh.... The carvings. Here is where Australian ideas would really count. Remember the books that are to be in the box. Australian fairy tales and poems.

What would be included in the carvings that would imply that?

Here's a message I received from an American carver and exactly why I am looking to this board for help....

Michael,

Thank you for your interest in “...”

That really is a beautiful chest. I would have to verify the measurements, I did convert them to inches and I think that it is 19 inches tall, 14.25 inches across the front and 11” deep. You will have to pick out the design that you would like carved because , honestly, I don’t have any idea of what Australian art is.

Originally Posted by echnidna

Fuzzie, going by the horizontal grain orientation of the entire door, the stiles must be veneered. The box was a gift in 1901 so it was likely made in 1900.

Bob
venered styles (?) or is the original made from fiddleback blackwood?

I've seen pictures of english sycamore with that sort of right angle figure
AWR No.57 suggests Blackwood also displays fiddleback


ian

Originally Posted by troll2555

Ahhh.... The carvings. Here is where Australian ideas would really count. Remember the books that are to be in the box. Australian fairy tales and poems.

What would be included in the carvings that would imply that?

gum tree leaves, gum nuts, gum blossoms, May Gibbs' characters (snuggle pot and cuddle pie), kangas, wallabies, possums,

I'd probably stick with gum leaves, possums, gum blossom


ian

Originally Posted by ian

Bob
venered styles (?) or is the original made from fiddleback blackwood?

I've seen pictures of english sycamore with that sort of right angle figure
AWR No.57 suggests Blackwood also displays fiddleback

ian

The doorframes are fiddleback blackwood.
The carcass seems to be straight grained blackwood.
The grain pattern on the front of the door is horizontal.
The fiddleback pattern is vertical.
But you can't have crossgrained rails or stiles, mechanically they wouldn't survive. If you blow the picture up you will see that the rails and stiles are effectively bookmatched. So the stiles must be veneered (or laminated). The rails are veneered also. Veneering was common in that era.
The only alternative is that a faux finish was used but that seems unlikely.

The effect of the horizontal pattern on the front of the door frame is a feature that ought be incorporated to maintain the essence of the box.

Originally Posted by troll2555

Ahhh.... The carvings. Here is where Australian ideas would really count. Remember the books that are to be in the box. Australian fairy tales and poems.

What would be included in the carvings that would imply that?

It may be interesting to see what, if any illustrations or frontipieces are in the books. Perhaps they may suggest suitable external carvings.

There is a 4 line inscription on the inside of the door panel, consideration about content is also worth considering.

What I see in the large picture is the fiddleback quilting oriented across both rails and stiles with the true gain less pronounced but still visible running lengthways in all frame components.

Looking at the image with the door closed, the inside edge of the frame is moulded with a quarter round. On the bottom rail the fiddleback pattern can be seen to run uninterrupted across the face of the rail and into the moulding. I think it would be an unusually thick veneer to be moulded in that manner.

I would go as far as to say that I can see a match of dark fiddleback ripples on the front of the door with corresponding light ripples on the inside of the open door. Bookmatched veneer on both sides of the frame face as well as complimentary bookmatching of the rear would be a challenge. How thick would the substrate be?

its quite an interesting box when you study it closely