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French boxes
View online inventory
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A
selection of
mid-19th century French inlaid boxes |
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French craftsmen have always been innovators in the decorative
arts and their workmanship is unmatched. These elegant boxes
combine the most elaborate techniques with the most luxurious
materials and represent the finest pieces sought by collectors.
Boulle work, intricate inlays of ivory, brass, and mother-of-pearl,
ormolu mounts and rare wood veneers applied to unusually shaped
or curved boxes are all included in our collection of jewelry
and trinket boxes, glove, fan and handkerchief boxes, perfume
bottle and decanter cases, humidors and spoon sets.
Boulle
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| French
boulle jewelry box, circa 1850 |
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Boulle or Buhl work, perfected by Andre Charles Boulle, ebeniste
to King Louis XIV, is one of the most elaborate typed of veneer
decoration. The technique involves a surface of tortoiseshell
inlaid with a design in brass. The term “Contre-Boulle”
refers to the brass surface inlaid with the tortoise veneer.
Examples of both can be featured in the same Boulle piece
and are often combined with ormolu (gilded bronze) mounts.
Boulle work has always been a luxury item. Many pieces were
commissioned as palace furnishings. Our collection includes
both French and English boxes for jewelry, gloves, letters
and matches, as well as boxes fitted for perfume bottles,
sewing implements, or decanters and glasses (known as a “cave
a liqueurs”).
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