Diminutive Welsh Coffer

Description

Scarce Welsh small coffer or “coffer bach” having hinged lid over two arch panels over two drawers, the whole constructed of dense Welsh oak and having a lovely rich color and patina.
A ‘Coffer Bach’ is Welsh for a small chest or trunk with drawers below. Made only in Wales, a ‘Coffer Bach’ is traditionally associated with marriages – a dowry or love chest which was held in high esteem and usually descended through the female line. Often given to the bride at her wedding, the ‘Coffer Bach’ would have been used to store her most prized possessions.
Richard Bebb explains that: ‘The elaborate paneling and use of solid oak throughout was an expensive statement and the pieces were made to be admired, continuing to form – with the clothing and bedding they contained – a part of the woman’s dowry. Besides their storage function, they fulfilled aesthetic and social purposes and often became heirlooms, and this favoured their traditional appearance.’ (Richard Bebb, Welsh Furniture 1250-1950: A Cultural History of Craftsmanship and Design: Volume Two 1700-1950, p.74).
Provenance: Schiffer Antiques