PROBABLY NUREMBERG OR ULM, CIRCA 1580-1600

The chest offered here is an outstanding example of a Truhe from the late 16th century, when in German cabinet-making the two-dimensional marquetry inlay slowly gave way to high-relief sculptural carving on furniture as primary decoration. This lot is the product of a transitional period from around 1600 as its highly architectural carved decoration is supplemented by rich inlay, not unlike that found in lot 7 in this sale. With its decoration mimicking the classical façade of a contemporaneous building, this Truhe is a forerunner of the large German wardrobes popular in south Germany during the first half of the 1600s, aptly named Fassadenschränke. For designs of such pieces, see H. Kreisel, Die Kunst des Deutschen Möbels: von den Anfängen bis zum Hochbarock, Munich, 1970, figs. 249a-249c. For chests with a comparable mixture of inlay and carved decoration, see ibid., figs. 232, 233, 240 and 241. While most of the cited comparable examples are bridal or wedding chests and are decorated with appropriate imagery, the lot offered here is inlaid with depictions of exotic flora, parrots and even elephants, including elephants engraved on the lock. A highly unusual decoration for a German Truhe, it reflects the budding interest in the exotic throughout Europe. The late 1500s is precisely the time when exotic animals and landscapes appear in prints, tapestries and other media and it is not surprising that such imagery was adapted to marquetry work.