A late 1700s portrait miniature, landscape setting, a woman in Titus or Guillotine Haircut, a shawl of blood red, helps to understand her era and politics. These portraits were political protests, declarations of (often) exiled French Royalists and both the particular haircut (short in back, curls swept forward, bare nape of neck - and the draping of red (for the blood) spoke to the losses suffered by the nobles and Royalists in The Terror. Perhaps she had it painted in remembrance of a parent, spouse or friend lost to that perilous time in French history. Mounted, as many did, on a snuff box to keep forever, the box shows some of its age (240 or so years now), This one is made entirely of heavy and dark tortoise shell and a trim of ivory. Full measurements noted on photos.
Very good to excellent condition for age and type. As you see, a couple of age/shrinkage hairlines on the ivory top border and extending as a tight fine hairline on the shell on side of top of snuff box. The portrait is very nicely done. I have photographed her outside of the mount, having taken her out in order to clean the cover glass. Remounted very carefully, she shows so well.
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.
