Heading : Tunbridge Ware - Small Curved Top & Square Ended Cigarette or Trinket Box 
Date : 1932
Period : Edwardian
Origin : Pieces of this nature are invariably attributed to Thomas Littleton Green who established Rye Mosaics with Richard Kemp, who had previously worked at the Tunbridge Wells Manufacturing Company. The fact that the box lid has a hand-written legend 'RYE 21-7-1932' is absolutely consistent with all the other features which mark this as a TLG piece
Decoration : The four sides of the box are plain, with the base lined in original green velvet; the curved lid features a small but very finely made floral mosaic set within a three-square geometric border and some veneer panels; internally, an unlined cedar sleeve; this and the size of the box suggest that this may well have been a cigarette box
Condition : Fair to good; one of the TLG features is the use of thin wooden biscuits, set at an angle in to each corner to strengthen the joint; unfortunately, this box is a little too small for this technique and there are some losses where parts of the edges have flaked off; similarly, there are a couple of bumps to the edge veneers on the lid, and one of the end pieces has clearly been lost and replaced with a flat section, rather than a piece having the same curvature as the rest of the lid
Size : 10.3 x 5.1 x 6.6 cm

Restoration : none
Weight :  94 grams

Note : A family member of Thomas Littleton Green has pointed out that Richard Kemp was the son of Alfred Kemp, one of the partners in the Tunbridge Ware manufacturing firm of Boyce, Brown & Kemp which operated from Tunbridge Wells from 1873 to 1916.