Fine antique French Napoleon III to Belle Epoque era eglomise souvenir jewelry casket in gilt ormolu & thick beveled glass with reverse painted lid showing a colorful scene entitled "Trocadero". Those of you who follow our listings know we just love these old French treasures, and the ones that have architectural and monument scenes are just extra fun. Great souvenirs! This one, a souvenir some fortunate someone bought in 1889 at the Paris Expo - yes, the one where the Eiffel Tower was the brand new and very controversial attraction. The scene on top is of the Trocadero, which is directly across the Seine from the Eiffel Tower. Great condition, and great appeal. Enjoy your Grand Tour trip but find your fabulous souvenirs here with us!
"Eglomise" is the term applied to the back-painted glass panels in these old French souvenirs. Most of them date 1800s, though they were made up through about 1910 in this manner, too. Later ones often have a photo set in instead. The early ones are our favorites, sometimes a screened ink-line like drawing that is then hand colored, or sometimes a full miniature painting original, all worked on the back side of a panel or convex plaque of glass. There are sometimes open spots left and a final step is application of thin mother of pearl panels so that the windows shimmer with pearlescent light, or architectural details are pearl - you can see how fun those are. I'm listing a whole collection from this genre, one at a time, so will just give the barest detail of each as we move through the collection.
Very good condition. Possibly a small nip or corner chip to the glass panels in places but no large chips, cracks or damage to note. A few spots on the eglomise painting but no losses that I can se. The original interior is intact but quite age tattered. See pictures for measurements.
