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Snuffbox
Made at: Fürstenberg Manufactory (Germany)
German, Fürstenberg
about 1770
Object Place: Europe, Germany
Medium/Technique
Hard-paste porcelain with colored enamel and gilded decoration
Dimensions
4.4 x 9.1 cm (1 3/4 x 3 9/16 in.)
Credit Line
Gift of Rita and Frits Markus
Accession Number1983.630
CollectionsEurope
DescriptionThe rectangular, molded box has a slightly domed cover that is attached with a gilt-metal mount. The top and sides of the exterior of the box have a dark blue ground, with white reserves that are framed by rocaille ornament in manganese violet heightened with pale green and white. The reserves are painted with both exotic and common birds in simple landscapes in various naturalistic colors including brown, puce, green, blue, and red. On the bottom of the box are depicted two geese and a brightly colored bird (a guinea fowl?) in a simple landscape against a white ground. The interior of the cover shows a more detailed landscape and three birds perched on a branch: a pair of parrots, painted in yellow, red, and blue, and a cockatoo, which has white plumage tinged with red.