Antique French Porte Montre Beveled Glass Jewel Casket

This little casket/box is so endearing, with it's petite up-turned feet (of brass) and it's sloping pyramid profile. The top and bottom decorative panels are of fine brass, which has an intricate molded design of flowers and leaves. The beveled glass sides, as well as the beveled glass face portion are held into place by brass dentelle frames.

The front face depicts the old casino of Nice sitting at the waterfront. The color depiction of this scene includes metallic shimmering water and the fine architecture of the casino. The colors of the picture remain bright and clear. There is very slight color loss to a small portion of the sky behind the casino (of no importance to the quality of the total image).

The front "door" opens upward and is faced with a shiny metal which serves as a mirror. The interior of the box is lined with ivory silk and there is a brass hook for holding the pocket watch. The silk is frayed (typical of use) were the pocket watch would have been placed. The back and bottom of the box have a metallic panels (which reflect like mirrors), and are held in place by brass dentelle frames. There is a little metal handle on the top to carry the box with.

The measurements are: 4 3/8" tall (to top of handle), 3 1/2" tall to top of box, the base 2 1/4" square, the widest portion of the box at the bottom 2 1/4", the width of the top of the box side 1 1/4" and the front width 2 1/2".

While we do see a wide variety of "grand tour" trinket boxes, the lovely porte montre is among the most difficult to find. This is a particularly beautiful one with a lovely view of the old Nice casino.

Item ID: MT252