ANTIQUE 19thC SWISS 18k GOLD & ENAMEL SNUFF BOX, REMOND, LAMY & CIE c.1800
19th Century Swiss 18k gold & enamel snuff box, of rectangular form with canted corners, the cover is set with a finely painted panel depicting a queen (possibly Dido Queen of Carthage), wearing a laurel crown in a sumptuous ermine cloak with a dagger in her hand.
Hallmarked with a makers mark for Rémond, Lamy & Cie.
Reference Number: A7674
DESCRIPTION
Antique early-19th Century Exceptional Swiss 18k gold & enamel snuff box, of rectangular form with canted corners, the cover is set with a finely painted panel depicting a queen (possibly Dido Queen of Carthage), wearing a laurel crown in a sumptuous ermine cloak with a dagger in her hand.
The story was probably written between 1587 and 1593, and was first published in 1594. The story focuses on the classical figure of Dido, the Queen of Carthage. It tells an intense dramatic tale of Dido and her fanatical love for Aeneas (induced by Cupid), Aeneas' betrayal of her and her eventual suicide on his departure for Italy.
The enamel plaque is within a leaf and frame, bottom decorated with translucent blue enamel over hexogon shaped engine-turning, the side with similar lozenge shaped enamel panels. Hallmarked with a makers mark for Rémond, Lamy & Cie, (active in Geneva, 1801-1804, very important Swiss goldsmiths), with later Russian and French import marks.
Jean-Georges Rémond was born in France on July 27, 1752. Forced into exile by the revocation of the Edict of Nantes, his family took refuge in the German city of Hanau which soon became one of the largest production centers of goldsmithery in Europe in the second half of the 18th century. The son of goldsmith Johannes Remond perfected his skills in Paris, Berlin and London and quickly became one of the most prominent European goldsmith specializing in musical automatons and gold boxes.
He was later officially admitted as "Goldsmith-Jeweler" in Geneva on December 22, 1783 after having submitted an oval snuffbox in gold covered with an enamelled scene in the judgment of his peers. At the same time he founded "George Rémond Cie".
In the first years of the nineteenth century, the company "Rémond Lamy Co" produces brilliant boxes singing bird embellished with pearls that were intended for the Chinese market. The Napoleonic conquest imposes the French guarantee system and influences in the Geneva production. In 1806, the factory employs a hundred artisans and the production of the Fabrique rayon in Paris and London but also in Germany, Russia, Turkey and China. Jean-Georges Rémond died on February 11, 1830 in his hometown. His work, of a very high quality, was characterized by the use of the application of a translucent enamel on a gold surface guilloche and surrounded by a border of pearls. His snuff boxes were often offered as a diplomatic gifts. It is also said that if one wanted to receive a favor from Cambaceres it was enough to offer him a snuffbox by this renowned goldsmith.
CONDITION
In Excellent Condition - minor damages to the enamel on the bottom panel.
SIZE
Height: 1.5cm
Width: 9.5cm
Depth: 6.5cm
Weight: 131g