A vesta case, or simply a “vesta”, is a small box made to house wax, or "strike anywhere", matches. The first successful friction match appeared in 1826, and in 1832 William Newton patented the "wax vesta" in England.[1] It consisted of a wax stem with embedded cotton threads and a tip of phosphorus. Newton named his matches after Vesta, the Roman goddess of fire and the hearth. Small containers to house these friction matches were introduced shortly afterwards (in the early 1830s), to guard against accidental combustion. In England these containers took their name from the term Newton used for his invention, and they became known as "vesta cases", "vesta boxes" or simply "vestas". In America the more prosaic yet more descriptive term "match safes" was chosen.
There are three main forms of vesta cases: pocket vestas, table or standing vestas and “go to bed” vestas. Pocket vesta cases were the most popular form, and were often made to be suspended from a fob chain or an Albert chain. Table vestas were usually larger than pocket vestas and left in a handy position in the home, such as the kitchen or close to a fireplace. “Go to bed” vestas were often joined to a candle stick holder or had a holder for a single match.
Boot Matchsafe, late 19th century, with striker on sole. Silver with niello.
They were made throughout the world including the United Kingdom, in the U.S.A., continental Europe, Japan and Australia. Important and notable English makers of vesta cases included silversmiths such as Mappin & Webb, Sampson Mordan,[2] Asprey & Co., William Neale & Sons, Elkington & Co., Saunders & Shepherd and William Hair Haseler, who partnered with Arthur Lasenby Liberty, the founder of Liberty. Significant American manufacturers of match safes include Wm. B. Kerr, Gorham, Unger Brothers, Battin, Blackington, Whiting, George Scheibler and Shreve & Co. In addition, one of the world’s most famous jewellers, Faberge from Russia, was known to design vesta cases. Not surprisingly, examples of Faberge vestas are rarely seen and are among the most expensive. Georg Jensen was a Danish silversmith and founder of Georg Jensen A/S one of the best known Scandinavian jewellers, also made vestas. A well known French jeweller (and politician), Charles Murat, made beautiful art nouveau silver vestas. In Germany, the still operating jeweller Gebruder Kuhn made beautiful art nouveau vestas. In Australia, Kalgoorlie jeweller George Addis, well known for making gold jewellery, was also known for making vestas using sea bean pods.
^"History of the Match". users.telenet.be. Archived from the original on 17 May 2011.
^"Novelty vestas: Sampson Mordan & Co Ltd". Antiques in Oxford. Retrieved 2020-10-04.
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