Lot 97
A late 18th century German gold and enamelled box by Les Frères Toussaint, Hanau, circa 1775, with marks imitating the rosette charge mark of the tax fermier Julian Alaterre 1768-1774
9 July 2015, 14:00 BST
London, New Bond StreetSold for £7,500 inc. premium
Looking for a similar item?
Our specialists can help you find a similar item at an auction or via a private sale.
Find your local specialistAsk about this lot
Shipping (UK)
A late 18th century German gold and enamelled box
by Les Frères Toussaint, Hanau, circa 1775, with marks imitating the rosette charge mark of the tax fermier Julian Alaterre 1768-1774
Oval, decorated with panels of sepia coloured guilloché enamel simulating moss agate within ribbon-bound green enamel laurel borders, the side panels separated by vase pilasters, length 6.4cm, weight 95gms.
Oval, decorated with panels of sepia coloured guilloché enamel simulating moss agate within ribbon-bound green enamel laurel borders, the side panels separated by vase pilasters, length 6.4cm, weight 95gms.
Footnotes
For a fulsome survey of the activity of Les Frères Toussaint, see Lorenz Selig's ground breaking research published in Murdoch and Zech (eds) Going For Gold (Eastbourne 2014). Toussaint were the leading, and most productive, gold box makers in Hanau at the end of the 18th century, they were contracted in 1773 to produce 160 gold boxes per year. Seelig notes that the Toussaints favoured the use of tree (moss) agate enamel design after the Parisian maker, Charles Le Bastier (op. cit, p.77).
Their marks were designed to resemble those of Paris; the rosette imitating the charge mark of the tax fermier Julian Alaterre 1768-1774, the crowned-K for 1773-74 and the bird's head discharge mark to the bezel. Frustratingly, the Toussaints did not change their marks to register different years, a box ordered by Carl Anselm von Thurn und Taxis in 1792 has exactly the same marks as the present lot.
Additional information
Bid now on these items
