A lovely and very old cards or gaming chest, complete with some of the original round gambling chips that came with it. This is a latest 1700s to earliest 1800s transferware decoupage decorated wooden coffret,complete with many French Empire scenes of exotic tableau, peoples and fashion of its time. The box is beautifully crafted of wood, is raised on pressed ormolu feet and still has the original working lock with key. Four lift-out decorated gambling trays for 4 players, and space to house cards and chips. The cards shown with it are for scale and are not included in the offering (not antique). The chest is 9.75" x 8" and is 4.75" tall when closed.
Very good to excellent condition for age and type. The layered intaglio prints and varnish have darkened some over time, particularly the one on top of the box, probably it has had additional layers of varnish. The interior is gorgeous, a spectacular example of this genre and era. You can see a few very small imperfections here or there in our photos, nothing major at all. Some light nips of time around the perimeter pencil edging of wood. No serious loss or chips. The interior is largely as original, with the missing divider in the playing cards section being the only loss to note. The chips you see inside came with it, are original and we are gifting those to the next owner along with their purchase of this fine museum quality box. Our photos are large and clear. We do expect our customers to review them all, evaluate the item based on both our description and our images. Thanks for all the compliments - we love what we do! Antiques & Uncommon Treasure - all the best, all the time.
