The gilded silver box contained a personal card informing that the presentation was With Compliments from His Highness the Maharawat of Partabgarh, Partabgarh, South Rajputana 1935. The presenter being His Highness Maharajadhiraj Maharawat Shri Sir Ram Singh II Bahadur, KCSI, of the Sisodhyia dynasty born in 1908, ascended to the throne in 1929 and died in 1949. on the right: A photograph of His Highness Maharajadhiraj Maharawat Shri Sir Ram Singh II Bahadur of Partabgarh, India, the patron and presenter of the box featuring thewa work of the Raj Sonis in 1935.

The card in the silver box informs that it was presented With Compliments from His Highness the Maharawat of Partabgarh, Partabgarh, South Rajputana 1935, possibly to a an ex patriot Civil Service officer for services rendered.

He was the ruler of the small princely state founded in 1433 as Sadri; renamed Partabgarh in 1698 then in 1818 became a British protectorate and since 1948 part of the state of Rajasthan, India.
The decoration of the box is different to other types of embellishments used on box lids and is known as theva or thewa work that is unique to Partabgarh in the Chittorgarh district of India. There are differing stories of how this technique was developed, one is that Nathu Soni invented the process but was imprisoned when he refused to impart his secret to his ruler or the goldsmith Nathuni Sonewalla developed the process in the second quarter of the 18th century.
There is also another story that the technique originated in Bengal about 400 hundred years ago where it was not received well so the family of Bengali artisans set off in search of patronage.
The Maharawat of Pratapgarh gave a land grant and his patronage to these Hindu artisans so they settled in Rajasthan where they taught male members of the Soni family, who call themselves 'Raj Sonis’, the secrets of the craft that passed directly from father to son over the generations.
The unmarked hinged lidded rectangular box presented by His Highness depicts a scene of a prince mounted on his steed aiming his rifle at a lunging big cat whilst another beast watches the event, set on a green glass background within a cut out border design.
The box measures 45x35x25mm, gilded externally and internally and the sides embossed with a continuous floriated design within a punched border.

The scene on the lid of the hinged lidded rectangular box; showing a mounted prince aiming a rifle at a lunging big cat set on a green glass background within a cut out border design.	A close up of the gilded box with the sides embossed with a continuous floriated design within a punched border.

The presentation of this box was possibly to a Civil Service officer connected with the "Allocation of Seats under the Government of India Act, 1935, for the Upper Chamber of the Federal Legislature for British India".
The other hinged lid container from the collection of and illustrated in Dr. G. Cummins book is described as a Miniature Eastern spice box in silver with gold overlaid green glass top. The three small drawers in the base are probably for expensive spices such as saffron.
The scene on the lid is set within the same border design as the other box but features a seated female, a big cat, birds and floriated designs. The hinged lid does not have a foil backing used in other versions but relies on the reflection from the shallow compartment beneath.

The oval hinged lid container from the collection of Dr. G. Cummins features a seated female, a big cat, birds and floriated designs created using the thewa technique.	The lid of the oval box back-lighted showing the details of the gold work on a green glass base.

The lid compartment or one of the three draws in the base could be used to store sindoor, the vermillion paste used by Indian women to indicate their marital status. In the base, the central sliding draw is the full depth of the box whilst the draws on either side in self-contained compartments about the central draw and there is also a base rim.

In the base of the oval box is a full-length draw whilst those on either side are in a self-contained compartment possibly to hold spices or cosmetics.

The solidly constructed oval silver container is 50x25x45mm, weighs 56grams and is unmarked.
The workmanship on the lid of both pieces is similar but the oval box has finer detailed gold work, which indicates that this box predates the rectangular one by some decades. As it is undated, it could be from the reign of either Udai Singh who was the Maharawat from 1864 to 1890 or his successor Raghunath Singh from 1890 to 1929. The former rather than the latter is favoured due to the quality of the workmanship. The standard of thewa work had declined by the time of the presentation in 1935 as the weight of 36.4grams suggests and the finish lacks the fineness of the oval box. The earlier, heavier and finer finished pieces are more appealing as the artisans had the time to work on the creation of each item.

Some of the finest examples of this unique form of decorative art are in local museum collections in India as well as abroad including the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Victoria & Albert.

Although not often seen on the market outside of India, one thewa piece was for auction at Donnington Priory in July 2005. This was A 19th century gold Partabgarh thewa-work necklace, circa 1860-70, in the form of seven graduated oval green glass panels inlaid in gold and depicting hunting scenes with horsemen, and flowers and animals, mounted within alternate polished and burr-bead borders and with a bell-shaped filigree and beaded tassel fringe, to a two row woven cable-link back-chain on a similar thewa-work panel clasp, in a fitted case from 'Phillips Bros & Son, Art Goldsmiths, 23 Cockspur Street, London', approx. 46cm long overall (18 in). This was memento of Partabgarh, possibly acquired by an ex patriot or visitor, who took it when they returned to the UK and sold it to the goldsmith who boxed it for resale.

The process of making thewa work is detailed; time consuming and intricate, taking up to a month to complete each piece. It starts with broken pieces of terracotta, finely ground, mixed with chemicals and oil to produce a thick paste. The paste spread on a wooden base has a 23carat gold sheet of 40gauge thickness set onto the mixture and the free hand design etched on it. Black paint spread over the gold sheet highlights the design so it becomes clearly visible for further detailed work with fine tools. The craftsman removes the excess gold creating a design often based on Hindu mythology or Mughal court scenes, historical events or with fauna and flora motifs.
Gentle heating enables the peeling of the gold sheet from the base, which is a delicate step as the fragile sheet can break or lose shape; then thoroughly washed and cleaned with a mild acid solution. A piece of coloured glass traditionally red, green or blue, acquired from windowpanes of old buildings, is cut to the same size as the gold pattern and the silver frame and heated. Pressed onto the surface of the glass while it is still hot are the silver rim and the film of gold, by gently reheating the metal and the glass fuse and then allowed to cool slowly. Often fixed to the base of the glass is a thin piece of silver foil to give a uniform lustre, which is then encased in a silver bezel mount to finish the process. There are, however, limitations as to size of these panels as there is the danger of large pieces of glass cracking during heating. Over time the glass is liable to crack as it is fragile when used for this purpose.
 

Prior independence in 1947, thewa craftsmen relied on royal commissions but this patronage waned, so post-independence there was little interest in this type of luxury items. The practice and knowledge of the art declined and languished due to lack of demand but has since had a revival, especially for jewellery pieces. on the right: interest waned in thewa work after Indian independence but has subsequently had a revival as seen in this modern neck jewel using the 400 hundred-year-old technique

Ganpat Soni, a National Award winner and a modern master in the technique of thewa said that … the work requires intricate detailing and skilful fusion of the gold into the glass base, the wastage is high. Overheating can break the glass or melt the gold. Alternatively, if not treated properly the gold filigree does not fuse well and soon comes off. The problems are many - few selling outlets, lack of real appreciation for a thewa piece, with people often questioning the purity of gold rather than admiring the intricacy and skill of the designs. Also, Belgian glass, the base material for a thewa piece is becoming increasingly difficult to find and new sources are not forthcoming.

There is increased awareness of thewa work as Ganpat Soni received enthusiastic responses to displays and demonstrations of the craft at international fairs and exhibitions, but regretfully he added - very few confirmed orders. The variety of items made using this technique is large and includes personal items, jewellery, plates, picture frames, perfume bottles and vases. on the right: there is increased awareness internationally of thewa work but unlike other precious metal items the value of a piece is the skill and time required to fashion it as seen on the lid of this modern revival box

Unlike other precious metal items, the value of a thewa piece is not the intrinsic value but the skill required to fashion the piece.

Further information is on various web sites that cover the story of this unique art form of the Sonis of India.

Bibliography
Oppi Untracht. 1997. Traditional Jewelry of India. Thames & Hudson. London.
Rita Devi Sharma & M Varadarajan, 2004. Handcrafted Indian Enamel Jewellery. Roli & Janssen, New Delhi.
Dr. G Cummins. 2006. Antique Boxes Inside and Out. Antique Collectors Club, Woodbridge, Suffolk.
Web site: www.craftrevival.org/Artisans/002594.htm