Magnificent gold and enamel snuffbox by Freres Jordan. Hanau, circa 1800
This unique snuffbox, created in the workshop of the Jordan brothers in Hanau around 1800, is an outstanding example of German decorative art from the turn of the 18th and 19th centuries. Made of 14-karat gold, it has a rectangular shape, decorated with magnificent enamel decor. Of particular artistic value is the lid of the snuffbox, made using the technique of painted enamel en pleine. It reproduces a scene based on the painting by the English artist John Russell (1745-1806) Tom and his Pigeons (1792). This image symbolizes kindness, showing a child saving pigeons. The central drawing on the lid is surrounded by an ornament of green ivy, inlaid inside gold stripes framed with white enamel. The sides and central parts of the snuff box are decorated with white enamel inserts with gold bands, on the sides of which there are also elements depicting green ivy. The floral ornament, executed with a burin in gold and two-tone enamel, creates a harmonious contrast with the gold body of the product, emphasizing its sophistication and refinement. On the inside of the base and lid of the snuff box you can see the maker`s marks: the initials FJ with a crown, the hallmark of the city of Vienna, an intertwined S, a sunbeam and a monogram. There is also an inventory number 5340 on the flange. The snuff box is attributed to the Jordan brothers from Hanau, craftsmen who flourished in the Rhineland, especially in Hanau and Berlin, in the late 18th - early 19th centuries. The dimensions of the product are 7.4 x 6.9 x 2 cm, the total weight is 74 g. Literature: see cat. No. 44 in Charles Truman, The Gilbert Gold Box Collection, Vol. 2, and J. Clark, Swiss Snuff Boxes 1785–1835, in H. Williams, Enamels of the World 1700–2000: The Khalili Collection, London, 2009.
Begins 30.11.2024
