'Asana' Tea Box in Printed Wood

Provenance

The Asana tea box belongs to the North Indian tradition of decorative woodware — wooden forms treated with surface print and sealed under a waterproof lacquer. Each box is individually cut and worked in wood, its surface printed with an antique rug-style ornamental pattern and sealed under resin; a small antique gold handle is fitted to the lid. The tradition comes from workshops in Delhi NCR and western Uttar Pradesh, where artisans adapt the vocabulary of India's painted woodwork to contemporary domestic storage forms.

The rug-style surface print on Asana draws from the long tradition of India's carpet and textile ornamental vocabulary — the dense, repeat-pattern field composition that characterises the great flatweave and pile carpet traditions of Persia, the Mughal court, and the regional Indian weaving centres of Agra and Jaipur. The antique quality of the print — aged tones, warm ground — places this box in a register of objects understood as carrying the weight of material tradition. Asana in Sanskrit names the seat or posture — in yoga the stable, grounded position; in temple sculpture the platform on which the deity rests. The square format and the considered rug-print surface give this tea box the same quality of stable, grounded composure.

The waterproof surface makes this wooden tea box suited to everyday counter use. The antique gold handle is a cast fitting; handle with care. Each piece is individually handcrafted; print placement and colour tone may vary slightly between pieces.

Disclaimer

• These pieces are handcrafted in wood with a printed surface. Variations in tone and colour are a natural feature of the process.
• Minor differences in print registration or surface texture should be understood as the signature of individual craft, not a defect.