Coffer
1700-1750 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Villa Alta (Oaxaca) was an important centre of furniture production in Mexico. The small coffer is made up of a mixture of local woods, including rosewood to cedar and decorated with a border made up of jagged patterns filled in with composition to imitate inlay. The inside is decorated with scrolls and a honeysuckle (anthemion) scroll, motifs popular throughout Spain and the rest of Europe from about 1765 and widespread throughout the Spanish colonies by about 1800.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Mahogany with orangewood and rosewood veneers and composition, iron mounts partly gilt |
| Brief description | Coffer, Mexico (Villa Alta), 1700-1750 |
| Physical description | 'Coffer on four feet with convex top, wood carved with obling borders of scrollwork against a sink background filled in with black composition, iron mounts and lock partly gilt.' - 1925 registered description. Box with veneers hollowed in part to take composition. |
| Dimensions |
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| Credit line | Given by Dr.W. L. Hildburgh |
| Object history | Gift from Dr.W. L. Hildburgh F.S.A, Hotel Rembrandt, Thurloe Place SW, RP25/2127. Purchased by the donor at Brussels from a dealer who had bought it at Liege. Attributed as "Spanish. 17th century." Recent research suggests that this box can now be attributed to Villa Alta. The style of the metal mounts can be compared with railing in the choir of the church of San Jerónimo, Tlacochahuaya, in Oaxaca, and fittings on a trunk (San Marcos Tlapazola). In particular, the distinctive keyhole escutcheon can be paralleled on other pieces, suggesting a common workshop origin. Similar decoration can be seen on the pulpit and choir balustrades in the church of San Jerónimo Tlacochahuaya, Oaxaca. The internal decoration is likely to be a 19th century addition. Information from Dr Gustavo Curiel (personal communication, 2013). Dating The dating of Villa Alta furniture has undergone considerable revision in recent decades (2020); production is now known to have started by 1622 and continued to the early 19th century. See Gustavo Curiel (ed.), Carpinteros de la sierra: el mobiliario taraceado de la Villa Alta de San Ildefonso, Oaxaca (siglos XVII y XVIII), (Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Instituto de Investigaciones Estéticas, 2019 ISBN 6073015747, 9786073015745) |
| Subject depicted | |
| Summary | Villa Alta (Oaxaca) was an important centre of furniture production in Mexico. The small coffer is made up of a mixture of local woods, including rosewood to cedar and decorated with a border made up of jagged patterns filled in with composition to imitate inlay. The inside is decorated with scrolls and a honeysuckle (anthemion) scroll, motifs popular throughout Spain and the rest of Europe from about 1765 and widespread throughout the Spanish colonies by about 1800. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | W.27-1925 |
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| Record created | November 23, 2005 |
| Record URL |
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