95th Auction
2017/5/6
Lot 129
Master's mark crowned "GB" with cross between, probably German, 93 x 72 x 55 mm, 303 g, circa 1830
An impressive and very heavy four-colour gold and enamel table snuff box in museum like quality
Case: gold, master's mark crowned "GB" with cross between, imitation charge mark Jean-Baptiste Fouache (1775-1781), imitation Parisian guild punch mark "L".
Oval box with all-over engine-turned pattern, translucent red enamelling and applied gold borders, engraved scrolls and opalescent enamel pearls on matte sablè ground. The hinged lid is decorated with a central oval enamel medallion with polychrome miniature painting of a pastoral festivity scene. The sides are decorated with applied gold medallions with chased musical instruments, painting tools and gardening tools in four-coloured gold; there are also gold pilaster strips with pavilions with putti playing music, reading and sculpting.
This table snuff box in the style of the boxes produced in Paris is not only impressive because of its remarkable weight and size, but also because of the outstanding quality of the enamel work. The walls have an exquisite engine-turned pattern that shimmers through the blazing red enamel. The box is studded with large opalescent enamel pearls and in combination with the relatively small leaves on the branches they create a masterfully constructed, striking piece of art. Quite unusually, the pilasters have been arranged in the form of small pavilions with putti placed in them. They symbolize the visual arts - music, painting and sculpture with their attributes that are also repeated in the applied four-colour gold medallions with musical instruments, painting tools and gardening tools.
The oval enamel badge on the top has been painted with fine brushstrokes and shows a group of people enjoying themselves at a party - the image resembles the style of the Fêtes galantes, a style of painting which was very popular in the Rococo period and particularly so in France during the early 18th century. Usually they showed pastoral scenes with amorous couples in a bucolic setting with lush vegetation. Three imitation marks on the inside of lid and floor can be distinguished as so-called "poicons de prestige" inspired by the official stamps for Paris: imitation master’s mark, charge mark and mark of the Paris guild. These marks and the style of ornamentation indicate that the box was created in Germany or Switzerland and that it took its inspiration from the pieces that were produced by the makers in Paris.
An impressive and very heavy four-colour gold and enamel table snuff box in museum like quality
Case: gold, master's mark crowned "GB" with cross between, imitation charge mark Jean-Baptiste Fouache (1775-1781), imitation Parisian guild punch mark "L".
Oval box with all-over engine-turned pattern, translucent red enamelling and applied gold borders, engraved scrolls and opalescent enamel pearls on matte sablè ground. The hinged lid is decorated with a central oval enamel medallion with polychrome miniature painting of a pastoral festivity scene. The sides are decorated with applied gold medallions with chased musical instruments, painting tools and gardening tools in four-coloured gold; there are also gold pilaster strips with pavilions with putti playing music, reading and sculpting.
This table snuff box in the style of the boxes produced in Paris is not only impressive because of its remarkable weight and size, but also because of the outstanding quality of the enamel work. The walls have an exquisite engine-turned pattern that shimmers through the blazing red enamel. The box is studded with large opalescent enamel pearls and in combination with the relatively small leaves on the branches they create a masterfully constructed, striking piece of art. Quite unusually, the pilasters have been arranged in the form of small pavilions with putti placed in them. They symbolize the visual arts - music, painting and sculpture with their attributes that are also repeated in the applied four-colour gold medallions with musical instruments, painting tools and gardening tools.
The oval enamel badge on the top has been painted with fine brushstrokes and shows a group of people enjoying themselves at a party - the image resembles the style of the Fêtes galantes, a style of painting which was very popular in the Rococo period and particularly so in France during the early 18th century. Usually they showed pastoral scenes with amorous couples in a bucolic setting with lush vegetation. Three imitation marks on the inside of lid and floor can be distinguished as so-called "poicons de prestige" inspired by the official stamps for Paris: imitation master’s mark, charge mark and mark of the Paris guild. These marks and the style of ornamentation indicate that the box was created in Germany or Switzerland and that it took its inspiration from the pieces that were produced by the makers in Paris.
Sold
estimated
40.000—60.000 €
Price realized
54.800 €