English Staffordshire Lavender Round Cottage Pastille Burner c. 1840. Two story house, arbor, open chimney and windows, flowers, gilded accents. Part of a large Williamsburg, VA collection. Measures 3 3/4"x 3 3/4"x 4" tall. Weight 10 oz. In very good condition. PROVENANCE: A Private Williamsburg, VA Estate. Scent vinaigrettes, pomanders and perfumed handkerchiefs were effective enough while out and about in the streets of the city. However, by Tudor times, a special device had been developed to release a pleasant scent into the air in the home. These devices, called pastille burners, had become quite popular in aristocratic homes during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. By the time the Regency began, most upper class homes with any pretension to civility had at least one pastille burner. The very best houses usually had more than one. By the Regency, there were two general types of pastille burners, those made to blend with existing garniture, usually found in public rooms, and those made in the shapes of cottages and other rural buildings, which were most often placed in more private family spaces.

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