19th Century Painted Tortoiseshell Box

Round brown tortoiseshell box from the 19th century; the cover is painted in gouache with a slightly naughty scene: a little angel pushes back the fabric of the neckline of a woman wearing a flowing bluish-white dress with delicate drapes whose eyes are filled with reproaches; she brandishes a threatening whip above her head. The scene takes place in a peaceful landscape by a tree-lined river. Pretty