Bonbonniere thumbnail 1
Bonbonniere thumbnail 2
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Not currently on display at the V&A

Bonbonniere

1800-1825 (made)
Artist/Maker
Unknown
Place of origin
Rome (made)

Sir Arthur Gilbert and his wife Rosalinde formed one of the world's great decorative art collections, including silver, mosaics, enamelled portrait miniatures and gold boxes. Arthur Gilbert donated his extraordinary collection to Britain in 1996.


Object details

Categories
Containers
Metalwork
Mosaic
Personal Accessories
Object type
Bonbonniere
Materials and techniques
Micromosaic, tortoiseshell, and chased gold
Mosaic Glass
Tortoise Shell
Gold
Micromosaic
Setting
Chasing
Brief description
Rectangular bonbonniere with Temple of Minerva Medica. Rome, tortoiseshell, gold, micromosaic, 1800.
Physical description
Rectangular tortoiseshell bonbonniere, the cover set with a gold-framed micromosaic depicting the Temple of Minerva Medica - a circular ruin with a domed roof and arches at the sides partially overgrown with foliage.
Dimensions
  • Length: 5.4cm
  • Width: 8cm
  • Height: 2.5cm
Credit line
The Rosalinde and Arthur Gilbert Collection on loan to the Victoria and Albert Museum, London
Object history
Provenance: Graus Antiques, London, 1972.
Subject depicted
Temple
Summary
Sir Arthur Gilbert and his wife Rosalinde formed one of the world's great decorative art collections, including silver, mosaics, enamelled portrait miniatures and gold boxes. Arthur Gilbert donated his extraordinary collection to Britain in 1996.
Bibliographic references
  • Avery, Charles, assisted by Arthur Emperatori. Mosaics from the Gilbert Collection: summary catalogue. Exhibition catalogue Victoria & Albert Museum. London: H.M.S.O. 1975, cat. no. 81.
  • Wheeler, Daniel, ed. with introduction by Alexis Gregory. Princely Taste: Treasures from Great Private Collections. Exhibition catalogue, Jerusalem: Israel Museum, vol. 369, 1995, p. 78.
  • Gabriel, Jeanette Hanisee with contributions by Anna Maria Massinelli and essays by Judy Rudoe and Massimo Alfieri. Micromosaics: The Gilbert Collection. London: Philip Wilson Publishers Ltd. in association with The Gilbert Collection, 2000. 310 p., ill. Cat. no.109, p. 178. ISBN 0856675113.
Other numbers
  • MM 105A - Arthur Gilbert Number
  • 1996.254 - The Gilbert Collection, Somerset House
  • MM 19 - Arthur Gilbert Number
Collection
Metalwork Collection
Accession number
LOAN:GILBERT.928-2008

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Record createdJune 19, 2008
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O156394/bonbonniere-unknown/
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