BY ADRIEN-JEAN-MAXIMILIEN VACHETTE (FL. 1753-1839), MARKED, PARIS, WITH THE PARISIAN SECOND STANDARD MARK FOR GOLD 1809-1819 AND THE PARISIAN POST-REVOLUTIONARY MARK FOR 18 CARAT GOLD, THE FLANGE ENGRAVED 'VACHETTE BIJOUTIER A PARIS 20 K . 5 / 3.2.'; THE MINIATURE BY D. F. LEBELLE (FL. 1806-1831), SIGNED 'LEBELLE FÉCIT' (LOWER RIGHT), CIRCA 1815

Details

A FRENCH GOLD-MOUNTED TORTOISESHELL BONBONNIÈRE
BY ADRIEN-JEAN-MAXIMILIEN VACHETTE (FL. 1753-1839), MARKED, PARIS, WITH THE PARISIAN SECOND STANDARD MARK FOR GOLD 1809-1819 AND THE PARISIAN POST-REVOLUTIONARY MARK FOR 18 CARAT GOLD, THE FLANGE ENGRAVED 'VACHETTE BIJOUTIER A PARIS 20 K . 5 / 3.2.'; THE MINIATURE BY D. F. LEBELLE (FL. 1806-1831), SIGNED 'LEBELLE FÉCIT' (LOWER RIGHT), CIRCA 1815

circular gold-lined tortoiseshell box with waisted sides, the cover set with a fixé-sous-verre miniature of a view of the nave of a cathedral
3 1/8 in. (80 mm.) diam.

Provenance

with Galerie J. Kugel, Paris, 1996.
Christie's, London, 17 November 2009, lot 139.

Special notice

Prospective purchasers are advised that several countries prohibit the importation of property containing materials from endangered species, including but not limited to coral, ivory and tortoiseshell. Accordingly, prospective purchasers should familiarize themselves with relevant customs regulations prior to bidding if they intend to import this lot into another country.

Brought to you by

Harriet Bingham

hbingham@christies.com +44 (0)20 7389 2035

Lot Essay

Vachette was one of the best-known of the Parisian gold box makers at the turn of the 18th to the 19th Century. He struck his mark in 1779 and later worked together with Nitot, one of the court jewellers of Emperor Napoleon I. Lebelle worked in Paris at the end of the 18th and early part of the 19th Century, specialising in fixé-sous-verre miniatures depicting views of Paris.

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