Have you tried pushing it upward? It might be fastened with a french cleat.

We have tried pushing it up, but with no luck. Uncertain whether it’s because that’s not how it’s attached or because we haven’t been able to fully break the caulk seal

Dag nap-it if only I could see through the thing i could be more help. Knowing if it was nailed,screwed or glued would really help. Oh well win some loose some.

Yes, that would make life much easier. Figured it wouldn’t hurt to see if someone else on here had seen this sort of thing before and might have some insight.

I saw one with a little Budda squating inside but was leery of looking close and messing with it.

I am betting on the french cleat type of install, since there are no screws visible. Maybe put a board across the bottom, and tap it good with a hammer. I am not seeing any caulk in the picture, but, even paint, would make it stick a bit.

There is no standard way that these things are attached. It could even have had the back attached to the wall with screws, and then the screw heads were covered over with trim. Have you looked everywhere, including on top of it, for evidence of any fasteners, including holes that have been puttied over?

Try to find out if there are any 2 by 4’s behind your drywall, maybe the wooden structure was attached to it with nails. Consider taking an exacto knife or putty knife to break any seal around the wood first. If you end up having to cut it out, it is really not a big deal to replace a piece of drywall. You are obviously going to have to experiment how to remove this structure, as it is a puzzle at this time.

Why would it be chalked? That's odd. A rubber mallet to the bottom ought to loosen it. If it's not a cleat or similar metal key hole/ screw arrangement it is fastened from the back. What's behind that wall? Not a closet? Get a tall ladder get above it might be screwed in toe nail style. It's an oak box with crown/trim attached. Pretty simple, basic really,. Not a rare treasure. I would be more concerned with the wall damage taking it down than the box.