“tramp art“ matchstick tray

Wonderful “tramp art“ tray, made of burned matchsticks. Tramp art (or “prison art“) is a genre of folk art dating from the period 1870 - 1940, in which industrial wood products (crates, cigar boxes, matchsticks, etc.) were re-purposed into decorative items. The mythology surrounding tramp art is that it was the work of hobos, toiling around the campfire with castoff wood to earn a few bucks. Maybe! More likely, tramp art was a widespread craft, taken up by any handy person with a few idle hours. you have to admire the planning and craft that went into this piece, not to mention the number of matches!