A Chelsea porcelain bodkin case, circa 1755.

The bodkin case, with the mark of the Red Anchor period (1752-6), is realistically modelled as an asparagus spear and extremely finely painted.

Bodkin cases were designed to contain the long-eyed needles used to thread elastic and cord.

The Chelsea factory was famous for producing this type of ware, or ‘toy’, in the 1750s and 1760s.

REFERENCE: CER20147

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