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.
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
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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. |
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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. |
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Collection | |
Accession number | LOAN:GILBERT.367-2008 |
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Record created | June 19, 2008 |
Record URL |
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