Box
ca. 1560 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
This box is inlaid with bone, a cheap substitute for ivory. Ink-engraved bone was inlaid in wooden boxes, powder flasks and gun stocks, and was a German speciality. This box seems to be partly inspired by Italian examples, dating from about 1500. As well as medieval symbols like griffins and lions, there are classical motifs such as strapwork borders and a reclining nude figure. This box was probably a lover’s gift.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Engraved bone plaques and edging, walnut ground with fruitwood stringing |
| Brief description | German 1600-1600 |
| Physical description | Rectangular box with hinged, arched lid, on squashed ball feet, fitted with a rectanuglar iron lid handle and lock. The lid and sides are inlaid with figurative panels of engraved bone, each one bordered by a narrow band of horn, a narrow band of engraved bone with zigzag motif, and a wider band of engraved bone with scrollwork. The engraved figure on the lid is of a reclining naked woman with a dog amidst scrolled floral patterns and birds in the top left and right corners. The figures on the front of the box are two converging, lions and those on the side gryphons. On the edges are moulded sections of bone. On the lid are four turned decorative bone studs. |
| Dimensions |
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| Gallery label | BOX. Wood, inlaid with bone in scrolls, birds and lions in black engraved outlines; on the top a figure of a woman reclining, a dog by her side, and in front two lions. German. 16th century. H 6 1/2in x L 9in x W 6.5in. Bought, 4l. [Original Label] (1856) |
| Object history | This object was bought by the museum in 1856 for £4. (No further information recorded in V&A registry.) |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Summary | This box is inlaid with bone, a cheap substitute for ivory. Ink-engraved bone was inlaid in wooden boxes, powder flasks and gun stocks, and was a German speciality. This box seems to be partly inspired by Italian examples, dating from about 1500. As well as medieval symbols like griffins and lions, there are classical motifs such as strapwork borders and a reclining nude figure. This box was probably a lover’s gift. |
| Bibliographic reference | Ancient and Modern Furniture & Woodwork in the South Kensington Museum, described with an introduction by John Hungerford Pollen, (London, 1874), p.26.
Box. Olive wood, inlaid with bone and horn in scrolls, birds and medallions in black engraved outlines; on the top a figure of a woman reclining, a dog by her fide, and in front two lions.
German. 16th century.
H. 6 in., L. 9 in., W. 6 ½ in.
Bought, 4 l.
Bone and horn are used in this inlay. The designs on the bone are helped out with etching. The arabesque and strapwork is roughly sketched in. The lady with a dog on the lid stands for Diana. Monsters, animals, and flowers, figure amongst the arabesques. It has a snap lock, which consists of one large bolt pressed by a V spring. The wards are ingenious. One piece of iron, three sides of a square in shape, serves for the pin to take the pipe of the key, which turns on it and for two teeth or wards left on the opposite side of the iron through which it passes. The hinges have been fitted to the box before the marquetry was laid on, and do not show. There is a small side receptacle for jewels or gold in the inside of the box. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | 2813-1856 |
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| Record created | November 9, 2005 |
| Record URL |
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