Tuesday, February 7, 2012

Gifts of Grandeur: The Cavalry Snuffbox, 1750

Meissen Snuffbox, 1750
This and all related images from:
The Victoria & Albert Museum



During the Seven Years War (1756-63), scenes of cavalry skirmishes were quite fashionable as decoration on a variety of objects. Take, for example, the scenes on the cover, sides and base of this c. 1750 snuffbox which are based on paintings of battles by Georg Philipp Rugendas (1666-1742).

Instead of a battle scene, the image inside the lid of this box depicts soldiers at rest--drinking, smoking and playing cards.

This rare piece is an example of a porcelain snuffbox, few of which remain in good condition. Snuffboxes made out of porcelain followed the shapes of those made in gold and hardstones. The largest producer of such boxes was Meissen in Germany, which manufactured the majority of these about 1735-65.






No comments: