Originally, 'mashed paper', mixed with glue and other materials, which could be moulded. In the early Victorian period there was a vogue for small items of furniture made from layers of tough paper which were glued on to a wood or metal framework and also known as papier mache. Each layer of paper was rubbed down before the next was applied, producing a strong, hard surface. When finished, the object was coated with black lacquer, decorated with painted flowers in gilded panels and sometimes further adorned with inlaid mother-of-pearl. About a dozen different styles of American clock cases of papier mache were made during the period 1850-5. Papier mache was soon imitated by making cases with cast-iron fronts, similarly painted and gilded. These were at first referred to as 'iron mache'.