MARK OF NOEL HARDIVILLIERS, PARIS, 1744

Flowers have long occupied a prominent place in the decorative arts, bringing the beauty of the garden into the domestic interior. Beyond their aesthetic appeal, flowers often carried symbolic meanings, conveying messages that extended beyond mere ornament. Unsurprisingly, floral motifs adapted particularly well to gold boxes and remained among the favourite decorative themes of eighteenth-century goldsmiths and notably with Noël Hardivilliers who produced the earliest examples dated 1740-1742 (sold Christie's, Paris, 22 November 2022, lot 23). For this example, Hardivilliers opted to only enamel the bouquet of flowers retaining the gold ground, following a design in the Victoria and Albert Museum (E.296-1938). Meanwhile for the present lot, Hardvilliers retains the same shape but enamel the whole surface of the box in order to create a dramatic effect and enhance the flowers, which stands out against the green ground.

Although little is known of the early years of Hardivilliers' career, the records of the Registres de la Marque after 1750 show an important level of production. The corpus of boxes left dating from before 1750 show an inventive gold box maker with a preference for 'cage-mounted' boxes combining gold with a variety of luxury materials, including ivory, burgau shell, shell, mother-of-pearl and hardstones (see lot 69 in this sale) but also the use of virtuoso enamelling, with a preference for natural designs as opposed to scenes.
For a biography of Noël Hardivilliers, see lot 69.