An Important American Private Collection
A Gold-Mounted Tortoiseshell and Enamel Snuff Box, Antoine Tardiveau, Paris, 1809-1819, the Micromosaic by Domenico Moglia, Rome, early 19th Century
Live auction begins on:
June 17, 03:00 PM GMT
Estimate
12,000 - 18,000 USD
Bid
8,500 USD
Lot Details
Description
rectangular, the lid inset with a fine micromosaic plaque of a spaniel barking at a cat below trees, signed: D. Moglia to lower right, in a chased gold frame and a slender dark blue enamel border, tortoiseshell sides and base, a small gold thumbpiece, gold lining, rubbed maker's mark A?T in a vertical lozenge, Paris 3ème titre 1809-1819,
3 in., 7.9 cm wide
Domenico Moglia (c. 1780-1862) was a sought-after mosaicist recorded as working in both Russia and the Vatican. It was during his time working at the Vatican that he undertook one of his most significant projects: a copy of the portrait by Sir Thomas Lawrence, commissioned by Pope Pius VII to be presented to the future King. Works by Moglia were also displayed at the Great Exhibition held in London in 1851; these are now part of the Gilbert Collection at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London. A further mosaic with a pastoral scene, somewhat comparable to the present plaque – Deer Hunt – was presented as a gift from President Gronchi of Italy to President Eisenhower in 1956. Domenico Moglia’s son, Luigi Moglia, was also a prominent mosaicist, winning a gold medal at the London Great Exhibition (J. H. Gabriel, Micromosaics, The Gilbert Collection (London, 2000), p. 286).
Another Domenico Moglia panel featuring a spaniel was sold at Sotheby’s Paris, 4 May 2016, lot 100.