Partly the fashion of her time, and partly the desire of the gentleman who likely commissioned this young woman's portrait, she presents in what is known now as a "naughty" pose, breasts slightly more bared than fashion, and with a bit of an invitation in her beautiful face. Stunning young woman of Georgian era France (Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette) with huge hair in a stunning and unusual strawberry blond, with her arched brows a proposal above her big blue eyes. You can imagine how proudly some Mr. pulled her from his vest pocket for a pinch of snuff and a bit of a stir. The box is ivory. Liner is turned wood rather than what one expects, which would be tortoise shell. Rather unique and the interior shows a bit of warp to that bottom liner from the humidity of the snuff kept within, lo centuries ago. Measurements noted on the photos.
Very good to excellent condition for age and type. The portrait is exceptional! No warp, no damage, housed perfectly with a mat of silver and the original convex cover glass in excellent condition. The old lathe-carved ivory box has but a single age hairline along the side of the lid, and a small bit of another visible on the bottom. Displays as a real eye-catcher in any collection - including my own. Measurements noted on photos.
IMPORTANT NOTE regarding antique tortoise shell or ivory: We are great supporters of protection for endangered species in our modern world. We never buy or sell anything 100 years or newer; we donate to anti-poaching organizations; we don't hunt; we conserve in ways that impact global warming (we're totally solar at home), knowing those measures also protect the animals in the wild today. We also recognize the vast cultural history we preserve with our care and reverence for these antique objects, and agree with CITES that objects over 100 years of age have nothing whatsoever to do with species depletion in our current world.
Our offering exceeds the age limitation of "more than 100 years of age", and is well within the exemption for CITES regulation. If imported, met the CITES regulation. This item will be handled and shipped from our Utah business, and is not available for shipment internationally, nor within the USA to California, NY, Nevada, Hawaii, New Jersey, Oregon, Washington if it contains ivory, sorry. Please see our small print for more details.
