Mauchline Ware are wooden souvenirs manufactured in Scotland, primarily in factories in or near Mauchline and predominantly made of sycamore. The items have various finishes in a large variety of applications. Most Mauchline Ware products have transfers or photographs of popular tourist locations. There were also finishes with tartan, fern and black lacquer.
On offer here is a beautiful honey-toned wooden string ball or box - it would have been a sweet little Victorian souvenir that you would have purchased on your travels in Scotland.
This is a beautiful example of a string box for storing string and such - for the Victorian lady to dispense parcel packing materials. It is made of a rich honey-coloured wood and is in nice clean condition. The box has a decorative hole area on the top of the ball - this is where your string would be dispensed from. The ball has its original string which you might hang it from on a shelf or cabinet. The string is in good antique condition.
The box has an applied image of the High Street at Peebles. There is a strange little Scottish poem or motto inscribed on the back of the ball.
The box is in good antique condition with clear images on the lid - nice and clean inside and out - and with a rich antique patina to the wood outside. The wood is nice and shiny. The lid lifts off.
Measurements: The diameter of the ball is 8.5 cm. I have listed it at a fair price, given the popular subject matter and its condition. The string boxes are slightly harder to find. I have taken lots of images for your inspection.
It will cost £4.95 to post them to you in the UK with Royal Mail Recorded postage - this will be applied to your order at the checkout.
HISTORY: Mauchline Wares are Scottish wooden items which date from about the 1880s - until the 1900s. They are generally wooden souvenirs and giftware - made of fruitwood and decorated with black transfer designs. The scenes are usually of landmarks and popular towns - and spots favoured by tourists. They were very popular in their day and many pieces were exported globally.
The centre of the Mauchline Ware industry is the small village of Mauchline - which is located 11 miles inland from the Scottish coastal resort of Ayr. At its peak over 400 people were involved in the manufacture of these small (but always beautifully made) wooden souvenirs. Similar products were also made in Lanark - but most of the pieces are known by the generic name of Mauchline Ware.