Snuff Box
1790-1805 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Snuff, or powdered tobacco, was widely popular throughout Europe from the 17th century. Small boxes to contain the powder were made in their thousands, from the most luxurious to the everyday. This box is of a type that was produced in France by a semi-industrial process in the early 19th century. Boxes were turned out of maple or burr birch, and then steamed to soften them. They were then put into screw presses where finely worked metal dies stamped scenes or motifs into them.
Most of the scenes used to decorate the boxes related to current topical events. This scene, titled 'LARRIVEE DANS LISLE DE SCIOTO' [The Arrival in the Island of Scioto] celebrates the hopes of French investors who bought land in Ohio in the United States of America from the Compagnie du Scioto. They arrived in the United States to find that the promised city in the region of the Scioto river did not exist.
Most of the scenes used to decorate the boxes related to current topical events. This scene, titled 'LARRIVEE DANS LISLE DE SCIOTO' [The Arrival in the Island of Scioto] celebrates the hopes of French investors who bought land in Ohio in the United States of America from the Compagnie du Scioto. They arrived in the United States to find that the promised city in the region of the Scioto river did not exist.
Object details
| Category | |
| Object type | |
| Parts | This object consists of 2 parts.
|
| Materials and techniques | Maple or birch, turned, steamed and decorated with relief decoration formed in a press |
| Brief description | Circular snuffbox, with lift-off lid, made in birch or maple, steamed, the lid decorated with a scene of ships in a bay, below a tower, with the incription 'ARRIVEE DANS LISLE DE SCIOTO' |
| Physical description | A circular snuffbox with lift-off lid, of maple or birch, lined with tortoiseshell. The box and lid are turned, the wood then steamed and the lid formed in a press with a scene of ships entering port and the inscription 'ARRIVEE DANS LISLE DE SCIOTO'. |
| Dimensions |
|
| Production type | Mass produced |
| Marks and inscriptions | ARRIVEE DANS LISLE DE SCIOTO (In relief on the lid of the snuffbox.)
|
| Historical context | The scene on this snuffbox must relate in some way to the land swindle perpetrated by the Compagnie du Scioto, which sold prosepects in land in Ohio to French investors in the period from 1787 until the collapse of the company in 1790. There were at least two subsequent attempts to revive the company and in 1792 218 investors arrived in Alexandria, Virginia, to find that no land was allocated to them. However, during the 1790s, the Ohio Company did sell land to the settlers and in 1798 Congress granted land to the community (the French Grant), close to the Scioto river. Five hundred settlers arruved in 1800 and in 1803 the Company founded the city of Worthington, Ohio. |
| Subject depicted | |
| Summary | Snuff, or powdered tobacco, was widely popular throughout Europe from the 17th century. Small boxes to contain the powder were made in their thousands, from the most luxurious to the everyday. This box is of a type that was produced in France by a semi-industrial process in the early 19th century. Boxes were turned out of maple or burr birch, and then steamed to soften them. They were then put into screw presses where finely worked metal dies stamped scenes or motifs into them. Most of the scenes used to decorate the boxes related to current topical events. This scene, titled 'LARRIVEE DANS LISLE DE SCIOTO' [The Arrival in the Island of Scioto] celebrates the hopes of French investors who bought land in Ohio in the United States of America from the Compagnie du Scioto. They arrived in the United States to find that the promised city in the region of the Scioto river did not exist. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | 1638:1,2-1903 |
About this object record
Explore the Collections contains over a million catalogue records, and over half a million images. It is a working database that includes information compiled over the life of the museum. Some of our records may contain offensive and discriminatory language, or reflect outdated ideas, practice and analysis. We are committed to addressing these issues, and to review and update our records accordingly.
You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.
Suggest feedback
You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.
Suggest feedback
| Record created | November 7, 2003 |
| Record URL |
Download as: JSONIIIF Manifest
