VN MAUCHLINE WARE GO-TO-BED - ABERFELDY & BURNS VERSE

MAUCHLINE WARE MATCH HOLDER

YOU would be bidding here for a fascinating  Mauchline Ware go-to-bed match holder which was a Victorian’s souvenir from picturesque ABERFELDY in the Scottish Highlands.

THIS acorn-shaped  "go-to-bed"  really did light the way to bed for some shivering Victorian in the days when homes were dark and cold ! A match would be lit from a striker in a recess in the base and it would then be inserted in a finial so it could bring light to dark corridors and stairs. It wasn't miserly - candle wicks were very expensive.

The "go-to-bed" is decorated with a transfer of the TAY BRIDGE, ABERFELDY, a verse from a Rabbie Burns’ song and it also has the name of the retailer who sold it from his shop in the town.

The pull off lid is a good snug fit on to the barrel which was the container for the matches. It's a lovely old character piece and despite some wear and dings it's picked up since the 1860's, it's a nice and quite rare example of a practical item of Mauchline Ware.

The striker pad which was on the base has almost worn away over the decades but there is still a remnant there. The little bone holder in the lid which held the match has lost it's top but it doesn't detract from the appearance of a lovely shaped piece

Rabbie Burns visited Aberfeldy in Perthshire, Scotland, in 1787 and was so inspired by local beauty spot the Den of Moness, and it's birks (Scots for birch trees), that he wrote a complete song extolling its virtues. The rock seat where he perched himself above the spectacular Den of Moness and its famous waterfalls is still preserved.

The match holder carries a verse from his song and it reads:

The hoary cliffs are crown'd wi' flowers,
White o'er the linns the burnie pours,
And rising, weets wi' misty showers
The birks of Aberfeldy.

The verse is attributed to “Burns” and below it is the name of JOHN HARROWER,JEWELLER, ABERFELDY.

The holder stands 3 inches high and the base diameter is 2.25 inches.