Snuff Box – Snuff Box Decorated With A Miniature

Large circular snuffbox in boiled and varnished cardboard, perhaps in gutta percha (vegetable gum made from latex). A miniature painted on metal is protected by thick glass, rimmed with brass. The character, a respectable bourgeois, is dressed in a frock coat and a frilled waistcoat. He is wearing a top hat and carries a cane with a milord knob. He administers a pinch of tobacco and the expression of his face close to the caricature seems spontaneous, the emerging beard, the marked wrinkles, the elongated nose and especially the oblique look, almost surprised... 4 small nails under the base prevent friction. The interior shows some lifting of materials due to tobacco and signs of use (small chips, scratches) are to be noted on the outside of the box. 1st half of the 19th.