Casket (cofanetto or scrigno)

Italian, Venice

Not on view

Richly decorated with shimmering tablets of painted mother-of-pearl and gilded ivory, this casket incorporates gouaches showing mythological themes that celebrate female beauty. These depictions, combined with the fact that the lid originally enclosed a mirror, indicate that this cofanetto held toilet articles. The exterior framework is painted alla dasmaschina, showing decorative patterns resembling those used to embellish Saracenic steel.

[Daniëlle Kisluk-Grosheide, 2010]

Casket (cofanetto or scrigno), Beechwood, ebony, painted and decorated with incrustation of mother-of-pearl, ivory with gilding; miniatures: gouache on parchment; lined with later fabric, Italian, Venice

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Casket (cofanetto or scrigno), Beechwood, ebony, painted and decorated with incrustation of mother-of-pearl, ivory with gilding; miniatures: gouache on parchment; lined with later fabric, Italian, Venice
Casket (cofanetto or scrigno), Beechwood, ebony, painted and decorated with incrustation of mother-of-pearl, ivory with gilding; miniatures: gouache on parchment; lined with later fabric, Italian, Venice
Casket (cofanetto or scrigno), Beechwood, ebony, painted and decorated with incrustation of mother-of-pearl, ivory with gilding; miniatures: gouache on parchment; lined with later fabric, Italian, Venice
Casket (cofanetto or scrigno), Beechwood, ebony, painted and decorated with incrustation of mother-of-pearl, ivory with gilding; miniatures: gouache on parchment; lined with later fabric, Italian, Venice
Casket (cofanetto or scrigno), Beechwood, ebony, painted and decorated with incrustation of mother-of-pearl, ivory with gilding; miniatures: gouache on parchment; lined with later fabric, Italian, Venice
Casket (cofanetto or scrigno), Beechwood, ebony, painted and decorated with incrustation of mother-of-pearl, ivory with gilding; miniatures: gouache on parchment; lined with later fabric, Italian, Venice
Casket (cofanetto or scrigno), Beechwood, ebony, painted and decorated with incrustation of mother-of-pearl, ivory with gilding; miniatures: gouache on parchment; lined with later fabric, Italian, Venice

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