Snuffbox thumbnail 1
Snuffbox thumbnail 2
+5
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Image of Gallery in South Kensington
Not currently on display at the V&A
On short term loan out for exhibition

Snuffbox

1776-1777 (marked)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Verre églomisé is a relatively rare form of decoration for gold boxes. It involves gilding the back of a glass panel to create a mirrored surface, which is then engraved with a decorative design. The reverse of the glass is then painted and the panels applied to the box over gold or silver foil. The technique of verre églomisé, or gilded glass, derives from the Parisian art dealer and print seller Jean-Baptiste Glomy (died 1786) who revived an earlier technique.

This box has been painted with symbols of love - a girl holding a dove and on the base, flowers, a dove, a quiver of arrows and a harp. The background of the box is painted to resemble guilloché enamel. The inscription inside the lid indicates that the snuffbox was a gift from Charles Gordon-Lennox (1791-1860), 5th Duke of Richmond, a soldier and prominent Conservative politician. He gave the box to his friend, Sir Francis Freeling, 1st Baronet (1764-1836). The two men exchanged over 450 letters, now kept in the West Sussex Record Office.

Joseph-Etienne Blerzy was apprenticed in 1750 and became a master after 18 years. He was last recorded in 1806 and by 1809, a new mark had been registered by his widow Victoire Boizot.

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
Object type
Materials and techniques
Gold, <i>verre églomisé</i> (glass painted to resemble enamel) and enamel
Brief description
Snuffbox with young girl holding doves. Gold, enamel and glass. Pierre-Robert Dezarot, Paris, 1776-77
Physical description
A rectangular gold-mounted verre églomisé snuffbox with canted corners, the cover painted with a young girl en déshabillé holding a dove. The walls and base have emblems of love, each within a gilt border, on grounds painted in red, green and brown to imitate guilloché enamel. They are also gilded with foliage and wreaths. The panels are mounted in gold chased with foliage and with pilasters at each corner.
Dimensions
  • Height: 36mm
  • Width: 88mm
  • Depth: 84mm
Marks and inscriptions
  • Mark of Pierre-Robert Dezarot (In the right side of the bezel, in the lid, and in the front wall)
  • Marks for Paris ca. 1776-1777 (In the right side of the bezel, in the lid, in the front wall, and on the right side of the bezel)
  • Stamped '16' (On the left side of the bezel)
  • Engraved 'Charles Duke of Richmond / to Sir Francis Freeling / As a token of his Esteem and Friendship / 5th July 1834 (On the interior of the lid)
Gallery label
  • 2. Snuffbox with young girl and doves, 1776–77 Museum no. Loan:Gilbert.367-2008(16/11/2016)
  • Snuffbox with young girl and doves 1776–7 The technique of verre églomisé takes its name from the 18th-century goldsmith Jean-Baptiste Glomy (died 1786). Gold leaf is applied to the back of glass. The design is then scratched through from behind and unwanted areas of gold leaf are removed. Paris, France; mark of Pierre-Robert Dezarot (active 1775–81) Gold, enamel and verre églomisé Museum no. Loan:Gilbert.367-2008(2009)
Credit line
The Rosalinde and Arthur Gilbert Collection on loan to the Victoria and Albert Museum, London
Object history
Provenance
Acquired by Arthur Gilbert from S.J. Phillips Ltd, London, 1981.
Subjects depicted
Summary
Verre églomisé is a relatively rare form of decoration for gold boxes. It involves gilding the back of a glass panel to create a mirrored surface, which is then engraved with a decorative design. The reverse of the glass is then painted and the panels applied to the box over gold or silver foil. The technique of verre églomisé, or gilded glass, derives from the Parisian art dealer and print seller Jean-Baptiste Glomy (died 1786) who revived an earlier technique.

This box has been painted with symbols of love - a girl holding a dove and on the base, flowers, a dove, a quiver of arrows and a harp. The background of the box is painted to resemble guilloché enamel. The inscription inside the lid indicates that the snuffbox was a gift from Charles Gordon-Lennox (1791-1860), 5th Duke of Richmond, a soldier and prominent Conservative politician. He gave the box to his friend, Sir Francis Freeling, 1st Baronet (1764-1836). The two men exchanged over 450 letters, now kept in the West Sussex Record Office.

Joseph-Etienne Blerzy was apprenticed in 1750 and became a master after 18 years. He was last recorded in 1806 and by 1809, a new mark had been registered by his widow Victoire Boizot.

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
  • Habsburg-Lothringen, Géza von. Gold boxes from the collection of Rosalinde and Arthur Gilbert. R. & A. Gilbert, 1983. 125 p., ill. Cat no. 49. ISBN. 0961039809.
  • Truman, Charles.The Gilbert collection of gold boxes, Vol. I. Los Angeles (Los Angeles County Museum of Art) 1991, cat. no. 30, pp. 101-3. ISBN.0875871623
  • Schroder, Timothy. Gold boxes : from the Gilbert collection : an exhibition, Los Angeles : Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 1986 64
  • Minter, Alice et al. Masterpieces in Miniature: Treasures from the Rosalinde and Arthur Gilbert Collection. London: V&A Publishing, 2021, p.68, cat.44
Other numbers
  • GB 38 - Arthur Gilbert Number
  • 1996.400 - The Gilbert Collection, Somerset House
  • 1996.791.1 - The Gilbert Collection, Somerset House
  • MIN 26 - Arthur Gilbert Number
Collection
Accession number
LOAN:GILBERT.367-2008

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Record createdJune 19, 2008
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