A scarce late 18th to early 19th c. covered sugar bowl in its original shellac finish.
Constructed of quality choice black ash burl wood and finely turned on a pole lathe. Its maker envisioned both capacity and form intertwined, creating a container capable of  reasonable storage and being refined in size. 
Its lid contains a singular stepped centric ring turning elevating its decorative value and is echoed by a series of additional incised ring turnings mirrored on both the top of its lid and along the rimline of the body. 
A quite rare and defining feature is its lack of finial. The turner was very much aware of blowout due to the random anomalies of burl wood when turning, and likely chose accessing the interior on a frictionless fitting design rather than a more common finial grab design.
The body is elevated from a footed base, uplifting its contents to the owner. Light elevation of its foot denotes strong appearance. Slow lathe marks and stepped turnings are present and indicate strong craftsmanship value.
Retains its original shellac finish pigmented with bittersweet color. Pigmented varnishes, shellacs, and varnish-paint mixtures of the period were a proper and dignitive addition to finishing woods. Ash burl being of only medium poprous value, created the dilemma of lack of adhesion with paint. Pigmented shellac was the solution and lent stable finishing properties and in this instance, a beautiful shellac was applied enhancing and brightening its wood grain and laborous forming process.
Remains in superlative original condition with as-descended properties, exceptional surface qualities, charming size and dense burl characteristics. 
Northeast origin, possibly New England based on its light appearance and design. Ca. 1790-1820. 4 7/16"W x 3 1/8"T.