A Round Snuffbox Or Box From The Late 18th Century.

A round snuffbox or box from the late 18th century. The lid features a miniature painting of a sleeping woman, her breasts exposed. This painting is protected by slightly domed glass and surrounded by a gold-colored, chased metal band (the material is unknown). A difficult-to-decipher signature is visible on the left. The body of the box is made of light-colored horn inlaid with gold. An elegant and refined object, perfectly representative of the 18th-century taste for precious and luxurious items. The miniature is painted with finesse, precision, and expressiveness in the pose and the face (the half-closed eyes, for example). The body of the box is also of very high quality with elegant gold decoration. Box dimensions: 6.4 x 2.8 cm. Visible area: 5.1 cm. Note a crack on the inside of the lid and a very small chip in the horn around the edge of the lid. There are also a few small losses of the gold motifs on the body. All of this is visible in the photographs. Note that the photos were taken with the glass on the miniature, which explains the slight reflections.