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Document Case

1500-1550 (made)
Artist/Maker
Unknown (maker)
Place of origin
Italy (made)

Cylindrical, lidded case containing - in the lid - a separate compartment for sand, covered with a perforated plate of tinned iron. There are eight loops and the cover is pierced with two holes for a cord. The body is decorated with four vertical panels separted by wreaths, two above and two below, filled with floral scrolls, with 1) a nude female figure holding a shield and spear, 2) a griffin, 3) a warrior in clssical dress with a sword and a spear, 4) an eagle. The compartment for sand is surrounded by a band of lions, and on the cover is a blank shield of arms within a scrolled cartouche.

Object details

Categories
Leather
Medieval and Renaissance
Object type
Document Case
Parts
This object consists of 3 parts.

  • Case Part
  • Pen Case
  • Lid
Materials and techniques
Wood with cut and embossed leather, with a tinned iron pierced plate
Leather
Embossing
Brief description
Wood with leather, Italian 16th century
Physical description
Cylindrical, lidded case containing - in the lid - a separate compartment for sand, covered with a perforated plate of tinned iron. There are eight loops and the cover is pierced with two holes for a cord. The body is decorated with four vertical panels separted by wreaths, two above and two below, filled with floral scrolls, with 1) a nude female figure holding a shield and spear, 2) a griffin, 3) a warrior in clssical dress with a sword and a spear, 4) an eagle. The compartment for sand is surrounded by a band of lions, and on the cover is a blank shield of arms within a scrolled cartouche.
Dimensions
  • Height: 39cm
  • Diameter: 8cm
Dimensions as described at accession: 480: H. 13 3/8 in. diam. 3 1/4 in. 480A. sand compartment H. 2 in. diam. 2 7/8 in. 480B. cover H. 1 3/8 in. diam. 3 3/8 in.
Gallery label
(5 Oct 2006 - 7 Jan 2007)
Case for Documents and Writing Materials
1500–50

Italian Renaissance society was one of the earliest in Europe to rely heavily on the evidence of written records for legal and family matters. This embossed leather case would be used for carrying documents, as well as for keeping them clean and safe in the home. Alternatively, papers could be threaded onto strings, tied together or bound into volumes. [60 words]

Italy
Wood with cut and embossed leather, with a tinned iron pierced plate

V&A: 480-1899
At Home in Renaissance Italy, eds.Marta Ajmar-Wollheim and Flora Dennis (London, 2006), cat.235, pl.12.4
Object history
Bought for £38 from Bardini Sale lot 245, 5-8th June 1899 at Messrs. Christie, Manson & Woods (RF 22865/1899);
Condition: 'slightly worn and wormeaten'. See Bardini Catalogue plate 17, No. 264.
Assigned to Woodwork Collection
Historical context
Comparable items:
Spitzer collection no. 845
Bibliographic reference
Ajmar-Wollheim, Marta and Flora Dennis, At Home in Renaissance Italy, London: V&A Publishing, 2006.
Collection
Furniture and Woodwork Collection
Accession number
480B-1899

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Record createdOctober 20, 2005
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O117791/document-case-unknown/
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