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silver and black box with floral design on it on a white backgroundan old silver and black box with red flowers on itan ornately decorated box with red and black designs on itan antique silver and tortoise decorated box on wheelsa silver and black box with a red and black designan old wooden box with metal decorations on it on a white backgrounda silver and tortoise shell box sitting on a white surfacean antique tortoise shell box with silver and red beads
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18 - Casket with a wooden core veneered in tortoiseshell, with si…

Estimate €2,500 - €3,500
Sale commission
Description
Casket with a wooden core veneered in tortoiseshell, with silver mounts and fittings. New Spanish work. Mexico. 17th-18th century. 90 x 10,2 x 5,7 cm. Of particular interest is a text from the Museo de Arte Hispanoamericano Isaac Fernández Blanco (Palacio Noel, Buenos Aires), regarding two related pieces in tortoiseshell and silver, Peruvian in that case, a jewel casket (a possible function for our piece) and a coffer: “Exchange between Asia and America was continuous from the mid-16th century until the second decade of the 19th century. Two or three times a year, the Manila Galleon crossed the Pacific, linking the Philippines with Mexico and bringing raw materials and luxury goods from Japan, China, India, and Persia. Meanwhile, registered ships patrolling the South American coasts ensured that these products also reached Peru. Thus, decorative motifs, techniques, and materials characteristic of Eastern arts eventually became typical of many American manufactures. This was the case with tortoiseshell, a horn-like material obtained from the shell of the turtle of the same name, which began to be used for objects ranging from combs and reliquaries to veneered furniture such as desks, tables, and cabinets. However, the most characteristic tortoiseshell manufacture of the colonial period was the coffer or casket mounted in silver, with fittings inspired by Mannerist, Baroque, or Rococo styles. These were produced both in Mexico and Peru, primarily for use as jewel boxes. They were even exported to Spain, where, due to their value and exotic appeal, they were sometimes used to contain the Blessed Sacrament, despite their clearly secular decoration.”
About the sale Dialogues with the Past: Vestigia
Auction location
Auction time 07/02/2026 at 7:00 PM
Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
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