GEORGIAN ANTIQUE VINTAGE ACORN TREEN TURNED NUTMEG GRATER c1800s. This is a superb Georgian treen nutmeg grater, turned and carved in the form of an ornate acorn form. The lid unscrews to reveal a beautiful Georgian bone mounted metal grated. It measures 4.5 cms wide and 7 cms tall. The term'treen' derives from the old English word meaning "turned".
The vast diversity of objects and of wood specimens were used to make small wooden domestic objects from Elizabethan times to the end of the Victorian period and were made to be used, not merely for decoration. Made by skilled rural craftsmen using a lathe or carved by hand, most often in fruitwood such as apple, plum, pear and cherry. Sometimes forest-woods such as sycamore, holly, box, alder, walnut, birch, elm etc.

And occasionally crafted from exotic woods such as cedar, teak, coconut, coquille nut, arbutus and lignum vitae. In the 15th century rich Europeans enjoyed the new and distinct flavour of nutmeg from Indonesia, many believed that it contained medicinal properties.

By the 1700s, many of the upper-classes enjoyed its flavour, the price making it a status symbol. Extremely wealthy individuals took to carrying a piece with them, ready to be grated and then sprinkled into tea or to spike punch, using their personal nutmeg grater that was kept tucked into a pocket, it also showed off their sophistication. The whole has a rich patina. Made in England in the late 18th or very early 19th century, during the reign of George III or George IV. There are three fine cracks which is not unusual for these pieces, please study the photos.