A George II enamel and gold presentation table snuff-box

MAKER'S MARK OF JEAN DUCROLLAY, PARIS, 1756-7, THE FLANGE WITH INVENTORY NUMBER 434, WITH CHARGE AND DÉCHARGE OF ELOY BRICHARD, CONTAINING TWO ENAMEL MINIATURES BY GERVASE SPENCER

Details
A George II enamel and gold presentation table snuff-box
maker's mark of Jean Ducrollay, Paris, 1756-7, the flange with inventory number 434, with charge and décharge of Eloy Brichard, containing two enamel miniatures by Gervase Spencer
Rectangular, the cover, sides and base centred by scrolling cartouches enamelled en plein with floral bouquets and landscapes in purple on a yellow ground in the corners, scattered by small reserves enamelled to simulate moss-agate, the gold ground engraved with foliage and scrolls, the interior of the lid inset with a gold panel containing two oval enamel portrait miniatures depicting King George III and his mother Princess Augusta
The box 3 7/8in. (99mm.) wide
The miniatures 1 7/8in. (48mm.) high
Provenance
Presented by either George, Prince of Wales, later George III or Augusta, Dowager Princess of Wales to John, 3rd Earl of Bute (1713-1792).

Lot Essay

Jean Ducrollay's outstanding reputation is praised by A. Kenneth Snowman, Eighteenth Century Gold Boxes of Europe, London, 1966, p. 77: 'Many of the most beautiful gold boxes produced in the reign of Louis XV were made in the workshop of Jean Ducrollay, and his is the name that first suggests itself both for unvarying brillance and craftsmanship and freshness of design'. The enamels on this box have a distinctly English character but are clearly contemporary with the box. Presumably Ducrollay supplied the carcass of the box and it was fitted with enamels and miniatures for presentation in London. Works by Ducrollay are in the collections of the Louvre, the Victoria and Albert Museum, the Wallace Collection and the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

George III of Hanover (1738-1820), King of Great Britain 1760-1820, was the son of Frederick Louis, Prince of Wales and his wife Augusta of Saxe-Gotha (1719-1772).

Opposite: Illustration enlarged

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