Brown Tortoiseshell Box Stitched With Gold / Naples / Circa 1740

Here is what the Louvre Museum's art objects department indicates for a fairly similar box: Oval box or snuffbox of spotted brown tortoiseshell, stitched with gold. Symmetrical decoration of lambrequins and centered shells covering the surface, shells embroidered with leaves and flowering branches, abundant flower seedlings framed by reserves with a stitched background or piastres. Hinged snuff box. Remarkable example of the art of pique with its derivatives: pique-point, pique-posé... all forming an elegant rococo composition. The origin of manufacture would be Italian, around 1730, the Kingdom of Naples developed a real school of gold quilting on goldsmith objects. The box that I am offering you is in rather good condition, some partial gaps in the decoration on the body of the box, however the decoration of the lid is complete. An old repair to the hinge is noted but no weakness in use. The decor of this box is particularly rich, abundant and varied. I don't see another example of an oval box during my research.