Vintage Swedish Kockums Enamel Trinket Box Trio

Dimensions: Large; 12cm diameter, 8cm high; Medium; 10cm diameter, 6cm high, Small; 8cm diameter, 5cm high.
Code: METAL 5621

Set of three, vintage, Swedish, “Kockums”, cream enamel trinket boxes from the 1930s/40s, sourced in Chettinad, Tamil Nadu, South India. The bases all have the original mark of the Kockums factory, and the inside is the same cream colour. This Swedish enamelware was produced by the Kockums family who began their factory in 1893 in Ronneby Sweden. These boxes fit neatly inside each other for easy storage.

The Chettiars were a community of Indians (who originated from the Chettinad region) that lived and worked in Burma during the 19th and early 20th centuries. Many of this community were very successful traders and maintained their family mansions in Chettinad to celebrate festivals and weddings. Often these splendid homes were beautifully decorated and filled with fine materials like Italian marble, Venetian chandeliers, Burmese lacquerware and enamelware from Sweden, Czechoslovakia and Britain. Etched on the lid of largest container are the initials P.A. These were added later because the Chettiars typically belonged to large joint families, with each branch of the family owning very similar objects of their diasporic heritage. It was important to etch their belongings, valuable or utilitarian, with initials clearly indicating ownership.

In very good vintage condition with no enamel chips.