Two Victorian pastry cutting wheels, each with a polished turned boxwood handle. The smaller has a bone carved wheel, the larger wheel is made from wood - and they both have a great time-worn patina. We are selling these individually, so once you've looked at the second image, please make your choice in the box below.

History

Treen, "of a tree", is a generic name for small vintage and antique handmade functional household objects made of wood. Today, treen is highly collectable for its beautiful patina and tactile appeal. Before the advent of cheap metal wares in industrialized societies, and later, plastic, wood played a much greater part as the raw material for common objects. Turning and carving were the key manufacturing techniques. The selection of wood species was important, and close-grained native hardwoods such as box, beech and sycamore were particularly favoured, with occasional use of exotics, such as lignum vitae for mallet heads.

Anything from wooden plates, bowls, small boxes, spoons, shoehorns, chopping boards and all manner of antique handmade wooden kitchen equipment can be classed as treen, such as our wonderful pastry wheels offered here. Their strongly functional and undecorated forms are now highly regarded by designers and collectors. We love treen.

Country of origin: England

Year of manufacture: c.1890

A) All wood / slight split and chip in wheel - see third image / Length 13.5cm / £38

B) Wood handle with bone wheel / Length 12cm / £38