Object of the Day, Museum Edition: A Frog Scent Case, 17th C.

Silver Gilt Scent Case
German, Seventeenth Century
The Victoria & Albert Museum

This silver-gilt scent case was made in Germany in the Seventeenth Century. As you can see, it’s created in the shape of a frog on a leaf. Such a case would have been worn or carried on the person to keep a pleasant aroma at hand at all times during periods when cities and towns didn’t smell so very good.  This one, for example, would have been worn from a chain or ribbon, suspended around the neck, or hung from a matching pin or brooch.  A sponge, fabric or porous material soaked with scent or pot pourri would have been contained in the case and the aroma would have escape through the pierced backing.

The owner and maker of this handsome figure are unknown, but it’s a lovely example of German silver work of the early 1600s. 

Mastery of Design: A Royal Scent Bottle

Scent Bottle
Crown Copyright
The Royal Collection
Image Courtesy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

Little is known about this hardstone scent bottle from the Royal Collection.  Its date of creation is uncertain, and no one is quite sure from where it came.  It's likely, however, that Queen Mary added it to the Royal Collection since it's the sort of thing that was right up her alley.  

The bottle of carved blue-green agate is oval in section and meant to hold a fragrance.  It tapers to the gold base and the neck is mounted with four circle link chains from which it is meant to hand.  Gold mounts in floral arrangements are set with garnets, coral, a pearl and a diamond.  The stopper is fitted with garnet flower-heads.  

Object of the Day, Museum Edition: A Potpourri Case and Pastille Burner, 1730s

Click image to enlarge.
Potpourri Case and Pastille Burner
St. Cloud Porcelain Factory
Paris, 1730s
The Victoria & Albert Museum

Made in Paris in the 1730s, this potpourri case and cover is made of porcelain. It takes the from of a gourd with an oval opening at the top. The cover fits into this aperture which is surrounded by perforations which allow the scent to escape. 

The piece of soft-paste porcelain is molded in relief. The work of the Saint-Cloud Porcelain Factory, the vase also doubles as a pastille burner. Pastilles were a tablet of a fragrant medium bound in gum which, when heated by a candle flame in the base, emitted a pleasing aroma. 

Figure of the Day: A Chinese Incense Burner, Eighteenth Century

 

Incense Burner
Chinese
Qing Dynasty, Qianlong Period
1736-1795
The Lady Lever Art Gallery, Liverpool



From the Chinese collection of the Lady Lever Art Gallery in Liverpool, England, comes this lovely porcelain incense burner. In the form of a rabbit atop a cloud, carrying a branch of fungus on its arched back, this vessel with its celadon glaze also features painted details in brown and sapphire blue.

The mouth and nostrils are ventilated, allowing for the smoke of the incense (which was burned inside of it) to escape and fill the air with fragrance. This object was created in the Qing Dynasty, Qianlong period (1736-1795). 

Unusual Artifacts: Scent Bottle with the Cipher of Queen Charlotte, 1805

Scent Bottle
With the Cipher of Queen Charlotte
1805
Crystal, Silver Gilt, Colored Paste, Enamel
Crown Copyright
The Royal Collection
Image Courtesy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

Wife of King George III, Queen Charlotte had a taste for fine, exotic fragrances. Her vanity was frequently said to be lined with glittering scent bottles. Very often, the fragrances were sent to her from India as gifts from the Nabob of Arcot along with a host of unusual jewels and luxurious fabrics.


This scent bottle was made in England specifically for the Queen and was meant to hold one of the fragrances which the Nabob had gifted to her. Its design is inspired by the jewels that the Nabob had sent to Queen Charlotte. The crystal bottle is adorned with paste “rubies,” “diamonds” and “emeralds.” The base of the bottle is engraved with Queen Charlotte’s crowned cipher and the peculiar motto, “Patent Paratout.” This is unusual since those words usually only appear on a particular type of umbrellas made in the early 1800’s.

By all accounts, Queen Charlotte favored this bottle and used it often. After her death, it was included in a collection of the Queen’s things that were saved. Somehow, in 1934, it was acquired by Mary of Teck. Queen Mary had a way of collecting all manner of interesting objects. The exact method she used to return this little masterpiece to the Royal Collection is unknown.

Mastery of Design: A Scent Flacon by Fabergé, 1900

Crown Copyright
The Royal Collection
Via The Royal Collection Trust
Image Courtesy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

Before Queen Mary, Consort of King George V, filled the Royal residences with Fabergé creations, her mother-in-law, Queen Alexandra, consort of King Edward VII, had already amassed a tremendous collection of her own--from her Fabergé farm in miniature which we've examined in great detail to the much-ballyhooed eggs to bell-pushes, desk-sets, clocks, picture frames and even little curiosities such as this scent flacon made by Carl Fabergé himself circa 1900.

The pieces is carved from a piece a aventurine quartz and is adorned with rose-cut diamonds and a cabochon ruby set in gold.  It's one of several scent flacons which Fabergé made in this form during a time when he was playing with the idea of imitating earlier Chinese carvings.

Her Majesty Queen Alexandra most likely acquired this flacon in 1904.  The records of The Royal Collection indicate that Her Majesty purchased a Fabergé scent flacon in jade at Lady Paget’s charity bazaar in 1904.

It could be that the records were referring to this piece.  However, I'd like to note that this piece is aventurine quartz which is not jade, which is a silicate mineral.  Still, the keeper of the records in 1904 might not have known the difference upon sight as the two minerals do look similar.  

Gifts of Grandeur: An Enamel Pendant Case, 1325

This and all related images from:
The Victoria & Albert Museum

This pendant case dates to 1325 and is made from silver, silver gilt and translucent enamels. The top of the pendant features a balustrade of openwork quatrefoils, the vertical edges of which are pinnacled buttresses. Each side of this unusual case is inset with an enameled plaque.


The top panel slides to open, and the inscription “AVE MARIA GRACIA PL[ENA]” is engraved in Lombardic lettering. The enamel plaques feature heraldic and romantic scenes.  


The place of origin of this particular piece is debated, but it is believed to have come from either France or Great Britain.  Nevertheless, it was made to hold spices and scents in order to combat the rather pungent air that surrounded most cities and towns.  This personal treasure was intended to be worn around the neck, or suspended from a belt or girdle.  

Mastery of Design: A Royal Scent Bottle

Scent Bottle
Crown Copyright
The Royal Collection
Image Courtesy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

Little is known about this hardstone scent bottle from the Royal Collection.  Its date of creation is uncertain, and no one is quite sure from where it came.  It's likely, however, that Queen Mary added it to the Royal Collection since it's the sort of thing that was right up her alley.  

The bottle of carved blue-green agate is oval in section and meant to hold a fragrance.  It tapers to the gold base and the neck is mounted with four circle link chains from which it is meant to hand.  Gold mounts in floral arrangements are set with garnets, coral, a pearl and a diamond.  The stopper is fitted with garnet flower-heads.  

Masterpiece of the Week: Scent Bottle with the Cipher of Queen Charlotte, 1805

Scent Bottle
With the Cipher of Queen Charlotte
1805
Crystal, Silver Gilt, Colored Paste, Enamel
Crown Copyright
The Royal Collection
Image Courtesy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

Wife of King George III, Queen Charlotte had a taste for fine, exotic fragrances. Her vanity was frequently said to be lined with glittering scent bottles. Very often, the fragrances were sent to her from India as gifts from the Nabob of Arcot along with a host of unusual jewels and luxurious fabrics.


This scent bottle was made in England specifically for the Queen and was meant to hold one of the fragrances which the Nabob had gifted to her. Its design is inspired by the jewels that the Nabob had sent to Queen Charlotte. The crystal bottle is adorned with paste “rubies,” “diamonds” and “emeralds.” The base of the bottle is engraved with Queen Charlotte’s crowned cipher and the peculiar motto, “Patent Paratout.” This is unusual since those words usually only appear on a particular type of umbrellas made in the early 1800’s.

By all accounts, Queen Charlotte favored this bottle and used it often. After her death, it was included in a collection of the Queen’s things that were saved. Somehow, in 1934, it was acquired by Mary of Teck. Queen Mary had a way of collecting all manner of interesting objects. The exact method she used to return this little masterpiece to the Royal Collection is unknown.

Sculpture of the Day: A Chinese Incense Burner, Eighteenth Century

 

Incense Burner
Chinese
Qing Dynasty, Qianlong Period
1736-1795
The Lady Lever Art Gallery, Liverpool



From the Chinese collection of the Lady Lever Art Gallery in Liverpool, England, comes this lovely porcelain incense burner. In the form of a rabbit atop a cloud, carrying a branch of fungus on its arched back, this vessel with its celadon glaze also features painted details in brown and sapphire blue.

The mouth and nostrils are ventilated, allowing for the smoke of the incense (which was burned inside of it) to escape and fill the air with fragrance. This object was created in the Qing Dynasty, Qianlong period (1736-1795) and today seems just the perfect secular image for Easter. 

Mastery of Design: A Frog Scent Case, 17th C.

Silver Gilt Scent Case
German, Seventeenth Century
The Victoria & Albert Museum

This silver-gilt scent case was made in Germany in the Seventeenth Century. As you can see, it’s created in the shape of a frog on a leaf. Such a case would have been worn or carried on the person to keep a pleasant aroma at hand at all times during periods when cities and towns didn’t smell so very good.  This one, for example, would have been worn from a chain or ribbon, suspended around the neck, or hung from a matching pin or brooch.  A sponge, fabric or porous material soaked with scent or pot pourri would have been contained in the case and the aroma would have escape through the pierced backing.

The owner and maker of this handsome figure are unknown, but it’s a lovely example of German silver work of the early 1600s. 

Mastery of Design: The Dame Joan Evans Scent Flask, 1650-1700

Click image to enlarge.

Scent Flask
Europe, 1650-1700
The Victoria & Albert Museum

From the collection of Dame Joan Evans, now at the Victoria & Albert Museum, we have this gold scent flask in the shape of a double gourd.

Made to hold fragrance, the flask was worn, suspended on a ribbon or chain, around the neck, allowing an olfactory distraction from the inevitable stink of any city in the late Seventeenth or early Eighteenth Centuries. The maker of the piece is unknown. We can only guess that it was made in Western Europe—based on stylistic cues. 

Unusual Artifacts: A Potpourri Case and Pastille Burner, 1730s

Click image to enlarge.
Potpourri Case and Pastille Burner
St. Cloud Porcelain Factory
Paris, 1730s
The Victoria & Albert Museum

Made in Paris in the 1730s, this potpourri case and cover is made of porcelain. It takes the from of a gourd with an oval opening at the top. The cover fits into this aperture which is surrounded by perforations which allow the scent to escape. 

The piece of soft-paste porcelain is molded in relief. The work of the Saint-Cloud Porcelain Factory, the vase also doubles as a pastille burner. Pastilles were a tablet of a fragrant medium bound in gum which, when heated by a candle flame in the base, emitted a pleasing aroma. 

Mastery of Design: An Enamel Pendant Case, 1325

This and all related images from:
The Victoria & Albert Museum

This pendant case dates to 1325 and is made from silver, silver gilt and translucent enamels. The top of the pendant features a balustrade of openwork quatrefoils, the vertical edges of which are pinnacled buttresses. Each side of this unusual case is inset with an enameled plaque.


The top panel slides to open, and the inscription “AVE MARIA GRACIA PL[ENA]” is engraved in Lombardic lettering. The enamel plaques feature heraldic and romantic scenes. 


The place of origin of this particular piece is debated, but it is believed to have come from either France or Great Britain.  Nevertheless, it was made to hold spices and scents in order to combat the rather pungent air that surrounded most cities and towns.  This personal treasure was intended to be worn around the neck, or suspended from a belt or girdle.  

Masterpiece of the Week: Scent Bottle with the Cipher of Queen Charlotte, 1805

Scent Bottle
With the Cipher of Queen Charlotte
1805
Crystal, Silver Gilt, Colored Paste, Enamel
The Royal Collection

Wife of King George III, Queen Charlotte had a taste for fine, exotic fragrances. Her vanity was frequently said to be lined with glittering scent bottles. Very often, the fragrances were sent to her from India as gifts from the Nabob of Arcot along with a host of unusual jewels and luxurious fabrics.


This scent bottle was made in England specifically for the Queen and was meant to hold one of the fragrances which the Nabob had gifted to her. Its design is inspired by the jewels that the Nabob had sent to Queen Charlotte. The crystal bottle is adorned with paste “rubies,” “diamonds” and “emeralds.” The base of the bottle is engraved with Queen Charlotte’s crowned cipher and the peculiar motto, “Patent Paratout.” This is unusual since those words usually only appear on a particular type of umbrellas made in the early 1800’s.

By all accounts, Queen Charlotte favored this bottle and used it often. After her death, it was included in a collection of the Queen’s things that were saved. Somehow, in 1934, it was acquired by Mary of Teck. Queen Mary had a way of collecting all manner of interesting objects. The exact method she used to return this little masterpiece to the Royal Collection is unknown.

Object of the Day: Victorian Mother-of-Pearl Scent Holder

I bought this object several years ago, not knowing what it was at first. I was attracted to the graceful mother-of-pearl shells that closed around two crystal bottles which are suspended in ormolu mounts. When I got it home, I realized that it’s a scent holder or scent stand. Pushing on the bronze post opens the shell which sits on an alabaster base. A lady would have kept two different scents in this container.

Though very few of these remain today, we know that very often these were sold as toilette sets which included a ring-stand, and, sometimes a small mirror. Occasionally, a mother-of-pearl and sterling miniature container came with these sets for use in travel.

I love this antique. It is pure Victoriana from the sheen of the mother-of-pearl to the naturalistic and architectural shape of it. It’s testament to the Victorian love of making all things beautiful—an ideal we should strive for today.