Painted Cigar Box with Wide Eyed Portrait baskets which comes off looking a

which comes off looking a bit rougher and more rustic than it really is

I also really love its function--with a hole for a stick of incense inside

The tray is signed C

Left: 8 9/16" t x 2" w

My pondering was on whether it is actually composed of two tightly interlocking pieces of wood or was just incised on the surface to give that illusion--but I've now learned that indeed this was a carpenter's trick

Painted Cigar Box with Wide Eyed Portrait baskets which comes off looking aPurchased from a dealer at Brimfield who always has great things, I really like how the portrait painted on the face of the cigar box looks as if preparing for their secrets to be revealed when one opens the box! And so perhaps just the right box in which to store one's diary, or stash of nude photos or pile of bills! Also stands on end to display just as a painting. 9" x 7 1 2" x 1 7 8". Good condition, with a fine, barely visible split in the wood