A SILVER, BURGAUTÉ LACQUER, ENAMEL AND CORAL TABLE CIGAR BOX AND ACCOMPANYING CIGARETTE BOX, ATTRIBUTED TO CARTIER, FRENCH, CIRCA 1920 | A silver, burgauté lacquer, enamel and coral table cigar box and accompanying cigarette box, attributed to Cartier, French, circa 1920

in Chinese taste, the cigar box rectangular, the cigarette box of upright shaped section with incurved corners, each with silver lid centred with a Chinese openwork coral knop, set within geometrical black decorationt, T pattern borders and an additional cylindrical ornament at each corner, the sides formed of burgauté lacquer with delicate riverscape scenery featuring pagodas, bridges and fishermen in boats, the cigarette box with further diaper decoration, on red enamelled slightly protruding corners, the cigar box lined with cedarwood, each with partially illegible maker's lozenge mark possibly for Maurice Couët, boar's head control mark

The Property of a Private Collector

The cigarette box in overall good condition, the silver with some minor surface scratches, the lacquer panels with a few ornaments missing and minute chips to edges, a few panels with minor surface cracks which do not go all the way through. The cigar box in overall good condition, very minor losses to ornament, minor surface cracks, especially to one side panel, the silver with minor surface scratches. The cigarette box with the serial number 'S472' on the rim of the lid, the cigar box with S4?2 on the rim.
"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."

‘Once, Cartier was master of the exquisite objet d’art: his miniature plants, destined for the princely boudoir in their delicate houses, reminded us of the Japanese and Chinese art of the Belle Epoque, with their jade leaves and quartz blossoms. But today he restricts himself to practical matters – the cigarette case and the vanity case, the familiar necessities of modern life’, states the report on Cartier’s contribution to the Paris Exhibition in 1925, published in the Gazette du bon ton of the same year. Although the present cigar and cigarette box doubtlessly have a more practical function than the iconic jewels for which the French company, founded by Louis-Jean Cartier in 1847, had become so famous, they are far from being plain domestic items. Very much in line with the European affinity for the Far East, small lacquer panels with delicate scenery, often of 18^th or 19^th century Chinese or Japanese origin, were combined with distinct geometric patterns, perceived as Asian, and with certain materials, such as coral, onyx, or jade which were extremely suitable for the colour and design schemes of the Art Deco period. The combination which is shown in the present caskets, as well as in different boxes and cases in private collections, was also used for clocks made for Cartier in the mid 1920s, such as for the ‘modèle écran’ clock by Maurice Couët, 1927 (Musée des Arts Décoratifs, Paris, Inv. 27898). Cartier’s fascination with lacquer had begun as early as 1888, when the Vicomtesse de Bonnemain commissioned the French jeweller with the conversion of her Chinese lacquer cabinet into a jewel case. About 15 years later, Louis Cartier purchased a Chinese lacquer snuffbox with French 18^th century cage work and another decade later, he started systematically collecting imported Asian lacquer panels from the leading Parisian antique dealers. These were then mounted in vanity cases and smoker’s requisites. Although Baron de Meyer had commented that the new dramatic colour combination of red, green, black and silver, introduced by Cartier in the 1920s, was a dangerous one and required very careful handling (Harper’s Bazaar, New York, March 1926), these two boxes demonstrate its success.