Snuffbox thumbnail 1
Snuffbox thumbnail 2
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Snuffbox

ca.1765 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

This box has been attributed to goldsmith Johann Christian Neuber (active 1762-1808). Though it is an unusual product for Neuber, it is similar to another documented example with a chimney sweep figure (see Kugel ed., Gold Jasper and Carnelian, Johanna Christian Neuber at the Saxon Court, 2012, cat. 26, p.137). The oval box is shaped from one piece of chalcedony. Some of the stones have been set with red and green tinted adhesives to create colourful effects, for example, the green grass.

Saxony was rich in minerals and hardstones, leading to a blossoming of lapidary (polished stone) work. The city of Dresden was home to a treasury which was later extended by Augustus the Strong, elector of Saxony and King of Poland (ruled 1694-1733). This famous Green Vault (as it was known) encouraged the production of luxury objects. It is said that chimney sweeps, such as the one depicted on this box, were widely considered a symbol of good luck.

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. Arthur recognised Neuber’s exquisite technical skill and acquired seven of his iconic snuffboxes in total.

Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Gold mounts, chalcedony, banded agate, onyx, sard, red and green cements, gold foil
Brief description
Snuffbox, gold mounts, carved chalcedony inlaid with hardstones, attributed to Johann Christian Neuber, Dresden, ca.1765
Physical description
Oval chalcedony snuffbox, the cover inlaid with an oval reserve of banded agate enclosing an image of a chimney-sweep in various hardstones including chalcedony, onyx and sard, holding a ladder and a brush, standing on grass against a trellis of red stone, heightened with colour. Each enclosed lozenge of chalcedony has bevelled edges and is bordered by a frieze of banded agate; the walls and base have similar trellis and border decoration, mounted in gold chased with an osier pattern, and the box has a flaring floral thumbpiece.
Dimensions
  • Height: 28mm
  • Width: 68mm
  • Depth: 49mm
Marks and inscriptions
No marks
Gallery label
(16/11/2016)
3. Snuffbox with chimney sweep, about 1765

Museum no. Loan:Gilbert.418-2008
(2009)
Snuffbox with chimneysweep
About 1765

The chimneysweep was widely considered a symbol
of good luck.

Probably Dresden, Germany
Gold, quartzite, agate and hardstones
Museum no. Loan:Gilbert.418-2008
Credit line
The Rosalinde and Arthur Gilbert Collection on loan to the Victoria and Albert Museum, London
Object history
Provenance:
Sotheby's London, 21 June 1965, lot. 155
Wartski, London.
Subjects depicted
Summary
This box has been attributed to goldsmith Johann Christian Neuber (active 1762-1808). Though it is an unusual product for Neuber, it is similar to another documented example with a chimney sweep figure (see Kugel ed., Gold Jasper and Carnelian, Johanna Christian Neuber at the Saxon Court, 2012, cat. 26, p.137). The oval box is shaped from one piece of chalcedony. Some of the stones have been set with red and green tinted adhesives to create colourful effects, for example, the green grass.

Saxony was rich in minerals and hardstones, leading to a blossoming of lapidary (polished stone) work. The city of Dresden was home to a treasury which was later extended by Augustus the Strong, elector of Saxony and King of Poland (ruled 1694-1733). This famous Green Vault (as it was known) encouraged the production of luxury objects. It is said that chimney sweeps, such as the one depicted on this box, were widely considered a symbol of good luck.

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. Arthur recognised Neuber’s exquisite technical skill and acquired seven of his iconic snuffboxes in total.
Bibliographic references
  • Truman, Charles.The Gilbert collection of gold boxes, volume II, London: Philip Wilson Publishers Ltd., 1999, cat. no. 19, pp. 38. ISBN.0856675210
  • Alexis Kugel in Kugel, Alexis ed., Gold, Jasper and Carnelian: Johann Christian Neuber at the Saxon Court, exh. cat. (Grunes Gewolbe, Dresden; The Frick Collection, New York; Galerie J. Kugel, Paris 2012) cat. 26, p. 137.
Other numbers
  • GB 224 - Arthur Gilbert Number
  • 1999.15 - The Gilbert Collection, Somerset House
  • MIN 73 - Arthur Gilbert Number
Collection
Accession number
LOAN:GILBERT.418-2008

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Record createdJune 19, 2008
Record URL
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