Snuffbox depicting Cupid
Snuffbox depicting Cupid
France, Paris
1789–1792
Delanoy, Jean François
Gold, enamel, tortoiseshell
2.4 × 7.3 cm
Marks: maker’s mark; charge and discharge marks of Jean François Kalendrin; date letter P89; French ET import mark (1864–1893), struck twice
The enamel panels on this box are a celebration of the possibilities of paillon decoration, with an extraordinary array of shapes – including small birds, flowers, bunches of grapes, foliate scrolls and simulated pearls – cut from foil sheets of silver and two colours of gold. Some of these elements are highlighted with translucent red and green enamel; everything is orchestrated to frame the central vignettes painted en camaïeu in grey and white with Cupid and an incense burner. Another box by Delanoy, set with similarly decorated panels, and like the present example with a tortoiseshell lining, is in the James A. de Rothschild Collection, Waddesdon Manor, Buckinghamshire.
8547MC937/ДПИ