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Box lid

Box lid

  • Place of origin:

    Venice (made)

  • Date:

    mid 16th century (made)

  • Artist/Maker:

    Unknown

  • Materials and Techniques:

    Brass, formerly inlaid with silver

  • Credit Line:

    Given by Dr W L Hildburgh, FSA

  • Museum number:

    M.15-1946

  • Gallery location:

    In store

  • Order this image

The elaborate decoration on this brass box and lid suggests that it was made in Venice between 1525 and 1575. Venetian brasswork was almost always engraved and inlaid with silver wire (now missing on this example) with extensive scrolling arabesque decoration often covering the entire surface of an object.
During the period 1500-1550 the production of brassware flourished in Venice. Venetian merchants brought back to the city goods from the Turkish and Arab empires that bordered the Mediterranean. These had an immediate influence on the local population and eventually the rest of Europe.

Physical description

Round with a flat top and straight sides. The top is decorated with floral arabesques and the side with arabesques within roundels and oval panels.

Place of Origin

Venice

Date

mid 16th century (made)

Artist/maker

Unknown

Materials and Techniques

Brass, formerly inlaid with silver

Dimensions

Height: 1.125 in
Diameter: 4.875 in

Descriptive line

Brass box lid, flat top, with flowing arabesques in roundels and oval panels, Venetian, mid 16th century

Attribution Note

probably by a Muslim craftsman

Materials

Brass (alloy)

Subjects depicted

Arabesques

Categories

Metalwork

Collection code

MET

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Qr_O76325
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