A LOUIS XIV GILT-BRONZE MOUNTED TORTOISESHELL, MOTHER-OF-PEARL, STAINED HORN, COPPER, BRASS AND PEWTER INLAID BOULLE MARQUETRY CASKET EARLY 18TH CENTURY |

decorated in contre-partie, top depicting landscapes with winged putti, sides with playful putti surrounded by birds and flowering trees, opens to reveal a later red velvet lined removable compartment above further storage space

Bernard Steinitz, Paris, 1977.

This casket is in an overall good conserved condition. The marquetry surfaces showcases signs of cracks and veneer liftings. There are minor losses to the lid's marquetry surface namely tip of leaf in the top left corner, tip of a plant just off the center on the left, one small mother-of-pearl loss below the central angel's wing, and another to the lower right of the lid. Some of the corner gilt-bronze mounts are loose, but are still firmly attached with screws to the casket. The interior rosewood surface shows minor scratches and signs of restorations, especially to corners. The casket does not close firmly due to the gilt-bronze mount slightly unscrewed. Small scratches throughout. The engraving is in particularly good condition. One key.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

COMPARATIVE LITERATURE

Brackett, O. Catalogue of the Jones Collection. London, 1930;
Wilson, G. Baroque and Régence: Catalogue of the J. Paul Getty Museum Collection. Los Angeles, 2008;
Kwiatkowska, A. The Wilanów Collection: The Toilet Set of Queen Maria Kazimiera. Wilanowie, 2013. As depicted in Jean-Marc Nattier's painting of Madame Marsollier and her daughter in Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (fig. 1), this type of casket placed on a dressing table was used to store articles necessary for a woman's toilette, a performative ritual 'devoted to grooming and beautification' [1]. Coming in two sizes, the large caskets, as the present one, usually contained pincushions and brushes while the smaller boxes stored ribbons, feathers and other trinkets. As Kwiatkowska reminds us, their rarity and refinement indicate that these caskets were masterpieces of the best French ébénistes.

There are solely a dozen examples surviving of these caskets, three of which were in the past in the collection of the Dukes of Hamilton. Other examples are now conserved in the J. Paul Getty Museum (inv. no. 88.DA.111) (fig. 2), in the Jones collection of the Victoria & Albert Museum (inv. no. 1053:1-1882) and in the The Wilanów Collection, which houses a rare toilet set comprising a mirror and four caskets previously owned by the Queen of Poland, Maria Kazimiera de La Grange d’Arquien. Given its quality, design and measurements, the present casket bears more similarities with the one at the Getty Museum. It is highly possible that they were created in the same skilled workshop. 

Other caskets, now in private collections, have been sold at:

- Christie's London, The Wildenstein Collection, 14 December 2005, lot 14 (£66,000)

- Sotheby's New York, Property from the Collections of Lily & Edmond J. Safra, 19 October 2011, lot 708 ($182,500), 709 ($194,500), 710 ($170,500) and 711 ($134,500)

- Sotheby's Paris, Les Dillée: une dynastie d’experts et de collectionneurs, 18 March 2015, lot 4 (EUR 123,000); previously in the collection of the 12th Duke of Hamilton.

While the decorations of these caskets differ from one to another, their decoration derives from a cycle of paintings on The History of Venus by the Italian painter Francesco Albani (1578-1660). Albani, one of the greatest painters of the Bolognese School, was first commissioned the paintings in 1615-1618 by Prince Borghese. Due to their fame and style much admired across Europe, the same paintings were commissioned a second time in 1621 by Ferdinando Gonzaga, whose set was later purchased by Louis XIV in 1685, set which served as model for these caskets decoration.

The lid of the present casket follows Les Amours Désarmés (Musée du Louvre, Paris Inv.nr. 11), illustrating the story of the goddess of love whose triumph is jeopardized by her rival, Diana, the goddess of the hunt (fig. 3). In the hope to defeat her opponent, Venus orders her nymphs to approach Diana's sleeping cupids and steal their weapons, clip their wings to prevent them from flying. The scenes across the sides are inspired from groups of cupids found across the four paintings. Much like the paintings, the maker of this casket achieved to translate the painted details into marquetry, aided by a range of materials creating shades and optical illusions to imitate nature.

[1] Kwiatkowska, A. The Wilanów Collection: The Toilet Set of Queen Maria Kazimiera. Wilanowie, 2013, p.7.