This one is special! Made for a Princess, then Queen of France
Marie-Thérèse Charlotte of France (19 December 1778 – 19 October 1851), Madame Royale, was the eldest child of Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette, and the only one to reach adulthood (her siblings all dying before the age of 11). She was married to Louis Antoine, Duke of Angoulême, who was the eldest son of the future Charles X, her father's younger brother; thus the bride and groom were also first cousins. After her marriage, she was known as the Duchess of Angoulême. She became the Dauphine of France upon the accession of her father-in-law to the throne of France in 1824. Technically she was Queen of France for twenty minutes, on 2 August 1830, between the time her father-in-law signed the instrument of abdication and the time her husband, reluctantly, signed the same document.
From my collections, the most elegant burled box ever, and the interior perhaps the finest preservation, though some of the fittings and jars are no longer with it. This would have been her travel vanity box. She was named after her maternal grandmother, the reigning Empress Maria Theresa of Austria. It's difficult to know what year this stunning chest was made, but it refers to her as Duchesse d'Angoulême, so at or after her wedding, which was June 10, 1799. You'll want to read about her and her extraordinary life.
Very good to excellent condition, box and inner fittings, lining. The contents include nested boxes holding vanity items, some remain and some have been lost to the ages. We've shown all the items remaining. Knowing the provenance, the history of the Royal for whom the set was made brings additional interest and value, as well. A museum piece, would that it were complete. I have never owned a box of such stunningly beautiful wood as this, and I am a box collector, have had well over 500 over the years. One of my favorites! It is 13" (or just shy of it), by 8.5" and is 5.25" tall when closed. The lock would appear to work, but we do not have the original key.
