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STEVEN S. POWERS

360 Court St. #28, Brooklyn, NY 11231

phone: 718.625.1715 / cell 917.518.0809

email: steve@burlsnuff.com

TREEN / BURL TREEN:

Treen is an old English word meaning "from the tree." Treen refers to small utilitarian objects of wood such as: carved wooden spoons, bowls, snuffboxes, turned trenchers (plates), mortars, etc.

Burl treen refers to treen made from the burl, which is a knotty outgrowth of a tree. Before North America was settled by Europeans, Native Americans had a centuries old practice of using these burls for their bowls and ladles and were master wood workers.

Eastern Great Lakes Bird Effigy Ladle

Circa: 1820
Size: from 11"OAL

An unusual and strong ladle - starts out as a somewhat typical bird form ladle, but carved atop the bird's head is a high relief crest or coxcomb. The coxcomb is carved with an "X" pattern. This same relief carved pattern has been seen on the heel of a human effigy ladle and a nearly identical bird effigy ladle in the collection of the American Museum of Natural History (cat #50.1/ 1545, collected by Tefft, Erastus, 1910.)

Eastern Great Lakes Bird Effigy Scoop

Circa: 1820
Size: 8 1/4"H x 7"D x 4 1/4"W

This is a great sculptural object! The overall form is unusual in the Woodlands effigy traditional, however the reductive resolve of the bird's head, neck handle and foot scoop are anything but the Woodlands aesthetic. Favorite detail: the thinly carved drape of the scoop's walls that feel like skin stretched over ligaments.

Important Nest of Woodlands Ash Burl Bowls

Circa: 1820
Size: from 11" - 24 1/2" oal

Quite an important group in the canon of Woodlands wood. These bowls are the only such group that I have documented to be conceived and executed as a true nest. What is more is that each is hewn from the same burl—the two inner from the excavated mass of the largest. Great line quality with atypical finger hole handles.

Likely Potawatomi or Ojibwa. Descended within a family from Southern Michigan with Potawatomi heritage.

Northeastern Ash Burl Charger/Common Round

Circa: 1780-1800
Size: 10" D x 1 1/2" H

Burl plates or trenchers are quite scarce - this is the only ash burl footed plate that I have encountered. This extreme rarity is a perfect object, with fine turnings to the underside and foot, ideal figure, color and surface. Just exceptional!

Pictured in: NORTH AMERICAN BURL TREEN: COLONIAL & NATIVE AMERICAN, p. 44, Pl. 1/36 a/b.

Iroquois Burl Bird Effigy Ladle

Circa: 1800-1820
Size: 7 1/8" OAH

An ash burl ladle (the whole ladle not just the bowl) with a strong, reductive perched bird carved at the top. This ladle is very similar to one shown in my book, NORTH AMERICAN BURL TREEN, p 169.

Rare Small Covered Burl Bowl

Circa: 1800
Size: 4 1/8" D x 3" H

This is a rare small sized covered burl bowl - one of the smallest I have ever seen. Thin with a great surface.

In my archives, I found that this same bowl was advertised in Maine Antique Digest, March 1987.

Folk Art Treen Snuff Box

Circa: 1780
Sizes: 5" OAL

Beautifully carved fruitwood snuff box with sliding lid - the top with a man with top hat atop a plinth - well carved with great details - open work around the figure's body. Exceptional surface and patination.

Shaker Figured Ash Dipper

Circa: 1820-40
Size: 6 3/4" oal; 4 1/8" D (bowl)

Large example of a Shaker dipper. Graceful form and balance - great surface.

Norwegian Burl Wine Taster

Circa: 1740
Size: 6 1/8" oal; (bowl) 3 3/8"d

A rare wine cup carved similar in style to peg tankards of the region. Vine decoration and a hunter and stag surround the cup.

The quality is masterclass - similar to the hand and workshop of Samuel Halvorsen Fanden.

Iroquois Bird Effigy Ladle

Circa: 1800-20
Size: 7" OAH

A strong ladle hewn of maple with a compact reductive bird. A strong undercut gives great definition between the bird and the handle. Nice step formed handle.

Woodlands Ash Burl Bowl

Circa: 1780
Size: 14"D x 4 1/2"

A strong bowl with a superb dark surface. Specimen of burl is unusually dense. Great tool marks to the exterior. Thousands of utility marks to the interior. A wonderful bowl!

SOLD

Exceptional Ash Burl Bowl

Circa: 1760-80
Size: 5 1/4" D x 2" H

A tour-de-force! This is just about as good as it gets...remarkable turnings (inside and out) and wonderful, rare gouge-work details to the foot. A connoisseur's object.

Woodlands Ash Burl Ladle

Circa: 1760-80
Size: 9 1/2" oah; (bowl) 5 1/2" x 4"

Strong form with a curved handle (coming towards the bowl - atypical). This one got a little close to the fire.

SOLD

UNIQUE ASH BURL DOUBLE MORTAR

Circa: 1800
Size: 5" D x 8" H

Turned in the form of a stoneware rundlet with barrel shaped body and repetitive ribbed turnings to the rim and foot. The ingenious aspect of this mortar is that there are cavities on both ends - creating a double mortar. When I see ingenious utilitarian design such as this, I am intrigued as to why it didn't become the standard - if I were the craftsman, I would have taken the idea and ran with it! Great sculpture!

Exceptional Burl Master Salt

Circa: 1780-1800
Size: 3 5/8" D x 3 3/8" H

This rare burl salt is the finest that I have owned/seen. Strong form - rolled rim and pronounced foot. Excellent surface.

Literature: Pictured in NORTH AMERICAN BURL TREEN: COLONIAL & NATIVE AMERICAN, p 21, pl 1/6.

Woodlands Ash Burl Bowl

Circa: 1780
Size: 13 3/4" D x 3 7/8" H

This is a well hewn very thin round bowl with great color and figure. The exterior maintains a dry patina with a burnt sienna tone and gradates to a warm ashen amber over the rim and into the interior.

Woodlands Ash Burl Ladle

Circa: 1780
Size: 4 1/2" oah; (bowl) 3 3/8" x 3 3/8"

Small ladle - possibly for a child. In-period break (?) to handle - (handle might have been a bit longer).

Boldly Turned Ash Burl Bowl

Circa: 1760-1780
Size: 13 1/2" D x 4 1/2" H

Here is a well defined and boldly turned ash burl bowl - look at that wide collared rim

SOLD

Treen Snuffbox - Flintlock Pistol

Circa: 1760-1780
Size: 4 1/2" L x 1 5/8 W" x 1 7/8" H

This is a good as a treen double barrel pistol snuff box gets - not that there are a lot of them out there for comparison. Carved from the solid of applewood the quality of the carving is first rate with intricate detail. The surface is untouched with a truly remarkable patina.

Provenance: Owen Evan-Thomas #424

Acrostic by Phebe Thomas - Plymouth County

Circa: 1835-40
Size: 5 1/4" x 5"

An acrostic by Phebe Thomas of Plymouth County, MA, in original, superb tenon and pegged joined red painted frame. An acrostic is a poem whereas the first letter of each line form part of a word or name - here we see PHEBE THOMAS when we read down the verse. Rare - the frame and the acrostic.

ENGLISH BOXWOOD NUTCRACKER

Dated: 1798
Size: 4 3/4" x 1 5/8" x 1/2"

Intricate incised carving with complex tracery and cross-hatch patterns all over. Dated 1798 and bears the initials, "JB." Boxwood.

SOLD

Tiny Beehive Turned Burl Bowl

Circa: 1760-80
Size: 3 1/8" D x 1 3/4" H

Rare VERY thin turned bowl. When turned over the beehive turnings are evident. Deep proportions. Dark, complex color and surface. A neat, but puzzling detail of the bowl is that there are four evenly spaced tiny holes below the rimÑI have yet to figure out their purpose. Ex DeVere Card.

Literature: Pictured in THE USE OF BURL IN AMERICA, pps. 26, 27, plates XXX, XXXI.

Exhibited: Munson-Williams-Proctor Institute; 1971