The maker’s mark is probably that of Adrien Charmelet, registered in 1925 as his initials with a flacon différent (device) in a lozenge. This bonbonnière casts a backward glance to Paris of the early 1780s; however, comparison with boxes of that period, such as the snuffbox by Adrien Jean Maximilien Vachette, reveals differences including the raised setting of the lapis lazuli panel and the somewhat over-zealous employment of pellet engraving on the side and base. The use of a pearl-set border in conjunction with hardstone is also atypical of Paris snuffboxes dating from the closing decade of the Ancien Régime.

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