Probably a last effort to do something different with an LED tea light! The gilding is gold substitute - which is trickier to handle than the real thing but the surface texture is part of the charm perhaps. The tea light is loose upside-down in a gilded-exterior cup held in the centre with three (gilded) short dowel rods. Of course the cup has a hole in the base through which the LED extends, though it cannot be seen from outside. The wood is walnut (bowl and lid) with a wax finish. The lid is just a reasonable fit - no retention. On the whole the pictures do not do it justice - the ring is quite bright (and flickers with the LED). I think all gold-interior bowls seem to glow - but this one actually does!