Bidspirit auction | [Antiquity. 400 Years. Expertised.] Jewellery

[Antiquity. 400 Years. Expertised.] Jewellery casket (cassone). Italy. Late 16th – early 17th century. Wood, metal, gesso (stucco), velvet; pastiglia technique, tinting. Historical expert report on cultural property by T. N. Karsakova, PhD in Art History, Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation. Dimensions: 19 × 27 × 25 cm. Condition: very good; professional restoration of the exterior finish. This casket is an authentic embodiment of the courtly luxury of Italian Renaissance palazzi. In the late 16th century such objects, conceived as miniature versions of the great cassoni chests, were commissioned by members of powerful dynasties such as the Medici or Borgia. Historically, caskets of this type were used to store the most precious possessions: family jewels, state papers or flacons of rare perfumes, and were an indispensable attribute in the private apartments of noble ladies, symbolising high status and impeccable taste. Pastiglia technique: the exterior decoration is executed in the rare method of moulded relief, in which gesso or stucco is used to imitate elaborate bone carving or tooled leather. Damask ornament: the relief pattern of interlacing tendrils and palmette‑like flowers recalls elite damask textiles of 16th‑century Italy and Spain; the absence of a single compositional centre creates an effect of endless, harmonious movement, a visual metaphor for the perpetual prosperity of a noble house. The interior is of particular value: the casket and its lid are lined with original crimson‑red velvet, whose saturated colour and acanthus‑scroll pattern underline the aristocratic function of the object.