Louis XIV Inkwell In Boulle Marquetry With Coat Of Arms

Dimensions: H 10.5 cm x W 35 cm x D 20 cm

Desk inkwell in Boulle marquetry, red tortoiseshell and engraved brass on a pewter background.

All sides are decorated with marquetry inspired by the floral and animal collection.
On each side, finely engraved brass scrolls form a loop, matching the shape of the object.

At the back are three birds in red tortoiseshell, their wings outstretched and seeming to sing. They rest on scrolls and branches harmoniously wound in finely engraved brass.

The front façade, supported on either side by square legs in concave parallel vertical walls, is depicted with a crowned coat of arms surrounded by winged putti holding bunches of grapes and facing serpents. The body of the puttis forms scrolls coiled and intertwined in snakes.

This figuration is characterized by the contrast of colors. The coat of arms on a tortoiseshell background highlights the red of the bunches of grapes and the snakes. The interior shapes of the coat of arms, the crown, the puttis and the scrolls are finely engraved in the brass, which particularly stands out the red tortoise shell from this light yellow copper color.

This coat of arms surmounted by a marquis crown bears a gold chevron and in chief of a double pendant in the same color.

The intermediate part, allowing the pen to be placed, has a large concave-shaped reserve depicting a canine versus feline scene.
We can discern in red tortoiseshell a feline (lion or tiger) in the left part. In the attack position, its body seems ready to pounce, its front legs raised towards its opponent. In front of him, a dog also seems ready to fight.

By their bright red color we particularly distinguish this scene, we can however notice in engraved brass that a woman holds the dog by the collar, her bust entirely extended over the animal and the lower part of her body transforming into scrolls like the putti in front.

This scene is framed by finely engraved brass scrolls and is finished in the upper part by an ogee profile surmounted in the upper part by a rectangular surface over the entire length.

There are two square areas raised by a few millimeters on the sides, presenting compartments for ink and drying sand and a rectangular area in the center, forming a sponge compartment.
These brass pieces are embedded in the inkwell with a pewter background and framed with lines, rolled scrolls and other foliage, in red tortoise shell.
This upper part is surrounded by an inverted cavet also in tortoiseshell.

Our inkwell stands out due to its particularly curved shape, unlike the inkwells of the time whose line is mainly rectangular, and due to its animal lexicon.

These particularities and the fine marquetry work make it a rare and precious piece.
This work of art thus reflects the refinement of Louis XIV and the exceptional know-how of this period.
The central coat of arms assumes that this object was made for a marquis, which underlines the importance of this magnificent piece.

Louis XIV period work in counterpart marquetry, red tortoiseshell and engraved brass on a pewter background with central crowned coat of arms.

Restoration of use and maintenance.