The Collection of a Connoisseur 掌上的百年風華: 鐘錶及裝飾藝術收藏
The Collection of a Connoisseur 掌上的百年風華: 鐘錶及裝飾藝術收藏
A GOLD AND ENAMEL PORTRAIT SNUFF BOX, PROBABLY JEAN-LOUIS HAUCHARD, HANAU, CIRCA 1780
Auction Closed
July 14, 12:35 PM GMT
Estimate
8,000 - 12,000 GBP
Lot Details
Description
A GOLD AND ENAMEL PORTRAIT SNUFF BOX, PROBABLY JEAN-LOUIS HAUCHARD, HANAU, CIRCA 1780
oval, the lid inset with an oval enamel portrait, after Jean Petitot, of a lady with dark ringlets and pearl jewellery, the ground, sides and base enamelled in translucent violet over fine scale engine-turning, the frame and borders chased and enamelled in green and scarlet basse-taille with interlacing and leafy sprays on a sablé ground, the left rim with Hanau bird head 19ct mark, the interior with rubbed Paris prestige marks including charge marks of Brichard and Alaterre
8.5cm, 3⅜in wide
The portrait represents a lady presumed to be Mademoiselle Dupré, known as 'la belle jardinière de Meudon', a beauty who had caught the eye of Louis XIV. Petitot's original miniature is in the Louvre (inv. 35720); her curls are shown as much fairer than in the present rendition.
As boxes which can be attributed with certainty to Hauchard are uncommon, it is a pity that the interior of this box has been polished leaving only traces of the marks. For images of the complete mark and an example in the Thurn and Taxis Collection, Regensburg, see Lorenz Seelig, ‘Eighteenth century Hanau gold boxes’, Silver Society of Canada Journal, 2015, vol. 18, figs. 30-32).