I was curious if a turning box could become a tunnel book… and I think the answer here is yes. This is a wee thing, only 8cm tall. Not quite small enough to be an official miniature, but pretty mini in the grand scheme of objects.
The scene is of Camas Cuil an t-Saimh (or, in English, the Bay at the Back of the Ocean), one of the best named locations on Iona – there’s nothing but sea between here and the east coast of Canada.
Covered in Japanese silk cloth and wood veneer, the little ‘pages’ – such as they are – are painted watercolours.
The box, when opened, shows the coastline on the outside in copper gilt.
This wee wonder has a new home in a private collection in the USA.
