This is a genuinely rare watercolour box.
It was made I believe around 1796 at a time when Mr Ackermann had taken out his first lease on 96 Strand London. He had this first lease for 10 years and from here he ran a drawing school.
It stands to reason that being a very entrepreneurial man not wanting to fail in taking up any businesses advantages that he sold drawing and painting equipment from this address. I have in the past seen a couple of items with this address and approximate date.

It is quite a large box and holds many wonderful items as I hope can be seen from the photos.

Another interesting fact is that Emily Bronte also had a box very similar to this one.

The condition of the box is very good with a lovely and rich Mahogany being used in its construction.

It has a key which works the lock.

The paints that would have accompanied the box would have been of the rectangular block type. These were either used up or swapped over at an early date for the porcelain pans found here.
During the 1840s porcelain pans became very popular amongst the people who could actually afford them.
They were favourable in a couple of ways. Firstly they are much easier to use and secondly for the first time paints could be truly moist which of course helps in use. They are also cleaner.

These particular porcelain pans still contain their original paint and were made by Winsor & Newton and are truly very nice.

The hinges on the box are sound and the lower drawer works just as it should though I have often wondered if the little pull handle to the drawer which though correct in every way is an early replacement? However as said it looks very nice.

A very unusual feature of this box that I have never seen before is the tiny lidded compartment that was most likely used for drawing materials. This like the palette lifter and paint tray has had their ribbons replaced for safety.

This is a very rare and beautiful paint box that is as useful today as it ever was. I can’t say it will make you a better artist but at least you will be in the company of other artists like Miss Bronte who used the same model box as this one.

Approx 32 x 21 x 8 cm