18th Century Continental European Gold-Mounted Jasper Box

A Continental European cartouche-shaped gold-mounted box of carved translucent red Jasper c1,800, of beautiful quality, the cover fluted and the bowl fluted and banded, the mounts chased. Unmarked. Hairline crack to top, the fashion for small, highly worked gold boxes reached its apogee in the 18th century. Small enough to be worn on one's person, they were often used to hold snuff, but otherwise were fashionable accessories which indicated the owner's status, good taste and wealth. This example incorporates translucent red jasper which has been carved with elegant fluting on the bowl and lid, dimensions length 9 cm, width 7.7 cm, height 3.9 cm