An Important American Private Collection
A Gold and Enamel Snuff Box, Jean-François Frégevize, Geneva, circa 1780
Auction Closed
June 17, 06:12 PM GMT
Estimate
12,000 - 18,000 USD
Lot Details
Description
oval, the lid centred with an oval domed enamel plaque painted with three classical figures and a putto by an altar of love and an athenienne, within interlaced white enamel bead and green leaf borders and polished gold surround, on a cherry red enamel ground over concentric engine-turning, the outer borders and dividers to sides also decorated with translucent red enamel flower heads and green leaves entwined with white bead garlands, the base further centred with a geometric ornament, the interior of the lid later engraved with an inscription reading: Hapsal, 1852, maker's mark JF over F crowned incuse,
3 ¼ in., 8.4 cm. wide
Jean François Frégevize was born in Berlin, 1737; aged 22, he embarked upon his career as a journeyman, working as a goldsmith in Breslau. Though little is known about his early work, Frégevize appears in records as a qualified as a bijoutier in Berlin relocating to Geneva in 1796 live with his wife, Marie Wolff, whom he married in the same year (Haydn Williams, 18th-Century Snuffboxes: The David and Mikhail Iakobachvili Collection, Vol I, London, 2024, p. 293).
Frégevize’s subsequent qualification as a bijoutier in Geneva in 1776 – in addition to his recognition in Berlin – renders his career unusual among masters. Frégevize remained in Geneva for almost a decade, working with the brothers Gédéon and Pierre Chapuis before returning to Berlin where, presenting an oval snuff box as his masterpiece, Frégevize was sponsored by 'Herr Théremin' (presumably François Claude Théremin). Exceptionally, Frégevize went on to command no less than fourteen apprentices before his death in 1804. The composition and details of Fregevize’s landscapes on several gold boxes echo the work of Berlin goldsmith Gustav Wancke and the workshop of the Jordan brothers.