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This box’s black and white design imitates a rare type of agate patterned with black veins that look like the branches of a tree or aquatic plant. Enamel that simulated agate was popular around 1775–80, evoking an 18th-century French interest in natural curiosities, mineralogy, and botany. Charles Le Bastier himself made at least seven boxes using this motif between 1775 and 1779.

Page data

Page
1
Source index
0
Type
photo
Media ID
4d0c4fa7336257e4
Size
unknown

Document data

ID
134851
Core
obj
Type
object
DTO data
{
    "id": "134851",
    "contentType": "object",
    "title": "Snuff Box (Tabatière)",
    "description": "This box’s black and white design imitates a rare type of agate patterned with black veins that look like the branches of a tree or aquatic plant. Enamel that simulated agate was popular around 1775–80, evoking an 18th-century French interest in natural curiosities, mineralogy, and botany. Charles Le Bastier himself made at least seven boxes using this motif between 1775 and 1779.",
    "date": "1777–78",
    "citation": "https://clevelandart.org/art/1957.406",
    "rights": "CC0",
    "rightsUri": "CC0",
    "language": "en",
    "wikidata": [
        "Q80027550"
    ],
    "creators": [
        8675
    ],
    "genreSpecific": [
        "Enamel"
    ],
    "iiifBase": "https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1957.406/1957.406_web.jpg",
    "thumbnailUrl": "https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1957.406/1957.406_web.jpg",
    "largeImageUrl": "https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1957.406/1957.406_web.jpg",
    "imageCount": 1,
    "source": "import",
    "dimensionsRaw": "Overall: 2 x 3.4 cm (13/16 x 1 5/16 in.)",
    "cul": [
        "France, 18th century"
    ],
    "accession": "1957.406"
}

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Document identity
{
    "localId": "134851",
    "label": "Snuff Box (Tabatière)",
    "core": "obj",
    "dtoType": "object"
}
Document source metadata
{
    "id": "134851",
    "contentType": "object",
    "title": "Snuff Box (Tabatière)",
    "description": "This box’s black and white design imitates a rare type of agate patterned with black veins that look like the branches of a tree or aquatic plant. Enamel that simulated agate was popular around 1775–80, evoking an 18th-century French interest in natural curiosities, mineralogy, and botany. Charles Le Bastier himself made at least seven boxes using this motif between 1775 and 1779.",
    "date": "1777–78",
    "citation": "https://clevelandart.org/art/1957.406",
    "rights": "CC0",
    "rightsUri": "CC0",
    "language": "en",
    "wikidata": [
        "Q80027550"
    ],
    "creators": [
        8675
    ],
    "genreSpecific": [
        "Enamel"
    ],
    "iiifBase": "https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1957.406/1957.406_web.jpg",
    "thumbnailUrl": "https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1957.406/1957.406_web.jpg",
    "largeImageUrl": "https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1957.406/1957.406_web.jpg",
    "imageCount": 1,
    "source": "import",
    "dimensionsRaw": "Overall: 2 x 3.4 cm (13/16 x 1 5/16 in.)",
    "cul": [
        "France, 18th century"
    ],
    "accession": "1957.406"
}
Document source extras
{
    "tec": "gold and enamel",
    "tombstone": "Snuff Box (Tabatière), 1777–78. Charles Le Bastier (French). Gold and enamel; overall: 2 x 3.4 cm (13/16 x 1 5/16 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Gift of Mrs. Edward B. Greene, 1957.406",
    "collection": "Decorative Arts",
    "inscriptions": [
        {
            "inscription": "[Warden's mark for Paris, 1778-1779, inside box on bottom, inside cover, inside on front wall]"
        },
        {
            "inscription": "[Discharge mark of Jean-Baptiste Fouache, Paris, 1774-1780, on neck]"
        },
        {
            "inscription": "[Engraved inside box on bottom, probably a modern inscription]: \"947\""
        },
        {
            "inscription": "[Charge mark of Jean-Baptiste Fouache, Paris, 1774-1780, inside box on bottom; inside cover; inside on front wall]"
        },
        {
            "inscription": "[Maker's mark of Charles Le Bastier, master goldsmith in 1754, inside box on bottom; inside cover; inside on front wall]"
        }
    ],
    "didYouKnow": "Not only did the design of a snuff box carry important social and political implications, proper snuff taking etiquette, outlined in 18th-century publications, also communicated status.",
    "url": "https://clevelandart.org/art/1957.406",
    "creditline": "Gift of Mrs. Edward B. Greene",
    "updatedAt": "2026-05-29 06:53:32.429000",
    "imageUrl": "https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1957.406/1957.406_print.jpg",
    "sourceId": 134851,
    "dept": "Decorative Art and Design",
    "coll": "Decorative Arts",
    "med": "gold and enamel",
    "creatorTags": [
        "male"
    ],
    "thumbnail_url": null,
    "image_url": null
}
Page context
{
    "seq": 1,
    "pageIndex": 0,
    "type": "photo",
    "url": "https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1957.406/1957.406_web.jpg",
    "mediaId": "4d0c4fa7336257e4"
}