Marquetry Glove Box in Burr Walnut and Rosewood, 1880

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The glove box is a characteristic object of the bourgeois and aristocratic culture of the Second Empire: designed to store … Read more The glove box is a characteristic object of the bourgeois and aristocratic culture of the Second Empire: designed to store the long gloves worn at evening events and balls, it was an integral part of the dressing table furniture. Its elongated and narrow shape is dictated by its function, and the quality of its craftsmanship reflects the care lavished on elegant everyday objects during the reign of Napoleon III.

This rectangular box with a hinged lid is made of marquetry veneer on a solid wood body. The lid combines a burr walnut base—a wood with a twisted and mottled grain—with a rosewood border featuring oblique, gilded veins, separated from the central field by a double fillet.

In the center, a cartouche of blackened wood with foliate outlines houses a brass marquetry element and a medallion surrounded by stained wood scrolls. The sides and base are veneered with plain burr walnut. It closes with a silver-plated metal ring lock.

The interior is fully lined with Chesterfield-style quilted crimson satin, buttoned at regular intervals, with gilt brass hinges — a meticulous finish characteristic of the small luxury cabinetmaking of the Second Empire. See less