Vintage Glass Powder Box with Gilt Metal Mounts and Painted Porcelain Medallion LidFlower Garlands, Attributed Late 19th Century, 12 cm

In the eighteenth century, the painter Antoine Watteau invented a new kind of picture, the fête galante: elegant couples courting in sunlit parks, dressed in silks and surrounded by music. The theme was so loved that it outlived its century, and in the late 1800s it reappeared everywhere, painted on porcelain plaques set into fans, clocks and the small luxuries of the dressing table.

This powder box, attributed to the late nineteenth century, is one of those dressing-table luxuries. Its body is a rounded, low bowl of clear glass. Around its shoulder hang swags of gilt metal flower garlands, and the gilt rim is decorated with a beaded edge and a band of Greek key pattern. The hinged lid closes with a small S-shaped clasp, and its top is set with a painted porcelain medallion showing a romantic garden scene in the fête galante tradition. The combination of clear glass, warm gilding and painted porcelain made such boxes a favourite gift for a lady’s dressing table.

The box is in good condition, as pictured. It still works perfectly as a home for powder puffs, but it is just as useful for rings, earrings or other small treasures on a dressing table or vanity.

In short, this is a vintage glass powder box with gilt metal mounts, flower garlands and a painted porcelain medallion lid, attributed to the late nineteenth century. It is 12 cm in diameter, weighs 205 g, and is exactly as pictured.

DETAILS

Size: Diameter 12 cm (4.7 in); height 6 cm (2.4 in). About the size of a saucer.
Material: Clear glass; gilt metal mounts; painted porcelain medallion
Style-Period: Fête galante decoration; vintage, attributed to the late nineteenth century
Weight: 205 g (7.2 oz)
Shipping: Professionally packed, fully insured, worldwide. We handle the paperwork, with all import duties paid by us; nothing to settle on delivery.
Condition: Good, as pictured.
Returns: Accepted within 30 days.

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A decorative style is not a guarantee of a particular maker or date. See the individual listing for the stated attribution and period.

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