Limited Edition Halcyon Days The Quakers Enamel Box
Posted on 26 April 2021
One of both the most beautiful and curious Quaker Collectibles is this enamel box by Halcyon Days.
Only 200 were made and finding out details about why and when it was commissioned are hard to come across. There are four panels of writing about the history of Quakers. The first, inside the lid, states:
The second and third panels have the ‘basic’ facts of George Fox founding the movement and William Penn founding Pennsylvania.
However, the fourth panel states that the ‘Quaker Doctrine’ was written in Scotland by Robert Barclay, in 1648. This is most definitely incorrect as Barclay was born in 1648 and the doctrine referred to is almost certainly Barclay’s Apology, of which the first complete version was printed in 1676.
Was the enamel box made for American Quakers of Scottish descent – and if so when? If you have any ideas or knowledge about this most striking of objects, please leave a comment below.
Images by Smudge
I purchased this Quaker box and really like the art work on it, the enamel finish, the writing about Quakers (except the error about Barclay) and the solidity of the piece.