THE COMPASS ARTIST
Paint Decorated Box
…..Important Provenance   

Lancaster County, PA, ca. 1800-1840. One of just three dozen boxes known by this celebrated artist, held in private collections or museums including Winterthur (which has 8) and the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

The name “Compass Artist” is an attribution coined by collectors and scholars based on the use of a draftsman’s compass to lay out decorative motifs. The identity of the Compass Artist remains unknown, though analysis suggests he may have been trained as a joiner or cabinetmaker within the Pennsylvania German tradition, which emphasized both functionality and ornamentation. Comparisons have been made between the Compass Artist's work and those found in frakturs and dower chests, noting that the designs likely held symbolic meaning tied to protection, fertility, and prosperity.

As seen on this box, works by the Compass Artist are identified by a recognizable visual vocabulary: sharp scribed compass-work outlines; polychrome paint, especially Prussian-blue, Vermilion red, and white lead (the top white-field on this box is a rarity); tin hinges inserted through horizontal slits; dovetails bisected, sawn after making basic box shape; dimpled hasp and escutcheons; bottom attached with square wooden pegs.

Very good condition, overall minor wear. Unobtrusive shrinkage crack on domed lid. No inpainting or repairs. Large enough create an impact yet small enough that it can be placed almost anywhere. About 11 ¼ inches wide x 6 ¼ tall x 7 ½ deep.

REFERENCE: THE COMPASS ARTIST OF LANCASTER COUNTY PENNSYLVANIA, Wendy Cooper et al., American Furniture, Beckerdite, 2009, pp 62-87.

PROVENANCE includes: Martha Bartlett, Washington, DC.