ANTIQUE 18TH - 19TH CENTURY SNUFF BOX WITH A FRENCH LITERARY SCENE

Scarce and charming antique snuffbox or patch box, probably Continental, 18th–early 19th century, papier-mâché in circular form with black lacquer finish, the lid featuring a charming engraving of a boy on a ladder handing a bunch of grapes to a girl waiting below, a tower and stone bridge in the background, the lower portion captioned "Enfance de Paul et Virginie," 3" in diameter by 5/8" high overall.

The caption and image refer to Paul et Virginie, a 1788 novel by Jacques-Henri Bernardin de Saint-Pierre, set on the island of Mauritius under French rule, in which the title characters, friends since childhood, eventually fall in love. The renown of the book was such that it is referenced in Flaubert's Madame Bovary (as a formative book for Emma Bovary), and it also served as inspiration for the 1908 romance novel The Blue Lagoon by Henry De Vere Stacpoole, perhaps best remembered for the 1980 film of the same name starring a young Brooke Shields.

Notes: A touch of mild surface wear, otherwise fine, beautifully preserved condition, with no breaks or losses

Home Decor, Decor

10%

Michael Rodman | (313) 719-1181 | neverenoughbooks@outlook.com

Pickup Details

Private Residence

Milford, NH 03055

When to Pickup

Saturday, 10/8, 10:00 am to 5:00 pm

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