Naples, Italy
Decorated with ‘piqué incrusté’ scenes of a snake and leopard in grass and a pair of birds carrying foliage in their beaks, this turtleshell box was probably made for snuff or patches. ‘Piqué point’ (gold pins) of varying sizes, inserted into drilled holes in heated turtleshell, add fine detail.
Earliest Rothschild collector: Alice de Rothschild; b.1847, d.1922
Credit: Bequest of James de Rothschild, 1957
c 1730-c 1750
Turtleshell and gold
2808
Image and text © Waddesdon Manor, 2019
Where you'll find this
Waddesdon Manor
Permanent collection