The old English word treen, meaning 'of a tree', had become obsolete by the beginning of the twentieth century. The word was however adopted by Owen Evan-Thomas and subsequently by Edward H. Pinto with the result that it is now universally used when describing any small antique wooden object of domestic, trade or professional use.

The number and variety of objects that come under the heading of treen is huge and diverse, ranging from the smallest sewing items through to farm implements. There are items from all aspects of everyday life from eating and drinking, through smoking and snuff taking to bathroom accessories. Items range from the highly carved ornate to the plain unadorned everyday functional. It is probably not an exaggeration to say that treen is the most diverse branch of antiques.

The treen collector has a vast array of objects to choose from and whilst early items are increasingly scarce and command prices consummate with their rarity, there are numerous opportunities to acquire beautifully made quality items at reasonable prices.

Select Bibliography

Although not badly served by reference books, treen suffers in that the majority of works were written over 30 years ago and are now out of print. However second hand copies are often offered by book dealers and visits to sites such as www.abebooks.com or www.abebooks.co.uk normally bring results.

As an introduction to the subject we would recommend the following two books, both of which are out of print but easily obtainable:-

Treen and Other Turned Woodware for Collectors by Jane Toller 1975

Treen or Small Woodware Throughout the Ages by Edward H. Pinto 1949

For those wishing to study the subject in more detail the essential reading is:-

Treen and other Wooden Bygones by Edward H. Pinto 1969 reprinted 1976, 1979 & 1985. Out of print but obtainable. The masterwork on treen, cataloguing the objects that became a lifetime's obsession.

Another highly useful book is:

Domestic Utensils of Wood by Owen Evan-Thomas 1932, Out of print but republished 1992 by Stobart Davies Ltd. A well illustrated work from the original treen enthusiast.

Recommended books dealing with specific aspects of treen are:-

Wooden Bygones of Smoking and Snuff Taking by Edward H. Pinto 1961 Out of print

Treen for the Table by Jonathan Levi, Published by the Antique Collectors Club 1998. Wonderfully colour illustrated work on wooden objects relating to eating and drinking.

Rarely found is :-

The W.J. Shepherd Collection of Treen Sothebys 1983 This catalogue of the largest collection of treen ever to come to auction is highly sought after as a reference work but rarely found. By way of a compromise we recommend Millers Antique Price Guide 1985,which has over 20 pages devoted to treen with the majority of the items shown being from the Shepherd Sale the previous year.