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Originating in the Americas, the practice of “taking snuff,” or inhaling pulverized tobacco through the nose, became a common European custom by the 17th century. Consumers of all social levels and of both sexes would carry small, airtight boxes filled with the powdered tobacco, taking a pinch whenever they needed. Over time, however, society’s elites began to purchase and commission increasingly extravagant and precious boxes. Kings and Queens would often present snuffboxes to ambassadors as diplomatic gifts and to courtiers as payment for services. Made of a variety of precious materials, including gold, enamel, semiprecious stones, lacquer, and tortoiseshell, snuffboxes were coveted and enthusiastically collected. Displaying one’s collection of prized snuffboxes or stylishly retrieving an elegant box from one’s pocket were important social rituals; these objects revealed a person’s tastes, interests, and erudition. This box has six faces, each with a transparent glass cover; the snuffbox’s owner could choose what scenes to display. Six painted scenes depicting Mediterranean ports, recalling the work of the French artist Claud-Joseph Vernet, are now in the box's frames.
Page data
- Page
- 2
- Source index
- 0
- Type
- photo
- Media ID
- 04e58fb424821428
- Size
- unknown
Document data
- ID
- 23832
- Core
- obj
- Type
- object
DTO data
{
"id": "23832",
"sourceUrl": "https://purl.thewalters.org/art/57.148",
"contentType": "object",
"stage": "normalized",
"title": "Snuffbox with Mediterranean Scenes",
"description": "Originating in the Americas, the practice of “taking snuff,” or inhaling pulverized tobacco through the nose, became a common European custom by the 17th century. Consumers of all social levels and of both sexes would carry small, airtight boxes filled with the powdered tobacco, taking a pinch whenever they needed. Over time, however, society’s elites began to purchase and commission increasingly extravagant and precious boxes. Kings and Queens would often present snuffboxes to ambassadors as diplomatic gifts and to courtiers as payment for services. Made of a variety of precious materials, including gold, enamel, semiprecious stones, lacquer, and tortoiseshell, snuffboxes were coveted and enthusiastically collected. Displaying one’s collection of prized snuffboxes or stylishly retrieving an elegant box from one’s pocket were important social rituals; these objects revealed a person’s tastes, interests, and erudition. This box has six faces, each with a transparent glass cover; the snuffbox’s owner could choose what scenes to display. Six painted scenes depicting Mediterranean ports, recalling the work of the French artist Claud-Joseph Vernet, are now in the box's frames.",
"date": "1771-1772",
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"language": "en",
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"snuffboxes"
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"dimensions": [
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],
"dimensionsRaw": "H: 2 1/2 × W: 3 5/16 × D: 1 1/2 in. (6.3 × 8.4 × 3.8 cm)"
}
Context sent to Scholar
Document identity
{
"localId": "23832",
"label": "Snuffbox with Mediterranean Scenes",
"core": "obj",
"dtoType": "object",
"citationUrl": "https://purl.thewalters.org/art/57.148"
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Document source metadata
{
"id": "23832",
"sourceUrl": "https://purl.thewalters.org/art/57.148",
"contentType": "object",
"stage": "normalized",
"title": "Snuffbox with Mediterranean Scenes",
"description": "Originating in the Americas, the practice of “taking snuff,” or inhaling pulverized tobacco through the nose, became a common European custom by the 17th century. Consumers of all social levels and of both sexes would carry small, airtight boxes filled with the powdered tobacco, taking a pinch whenever they needed. Over time, however, society’s elites began to purchase and commission increasingly extravagant and precious boxes. Kings and Queens would often present snuffboxes to ambassadors as diplomatic gifts and to courtiers as payment for services. Made of a variety of precious materials, including gold, enamel, semiprecious stones, lacquer, and tortoiseshell, snuffboxes were coveted and enthusiastically collected. Displaying one’s collection of prized snuffboxes or stylishly retrieving an elegant box from one’s pocket were important social rituals; these objects revealed a person’s tastes, interests, and erudition. This box has six faces, each with a transparent glass cover; the snuffbox’s owner could choose what scenes to display. Six painted scenes depicting Mediterranean ports, recalling the work of the French artist Claud-Joseph Vernet, are now in the box's frames.",
"date": "1771-1772",
"citationUrl": "https://purl.thewalters.org/art/57.148",
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],
"dimensionsRaw": "H: 2 1/2 × W: 3 5/16 × D: 1 1/2 in. (6.3 × 8.4 × 3.8 cm)"
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Document source extras
{
"inscriptions": [
"[Mark] On bezel",
"326; [Goldsmith Mark] On interior base",
"lid",
"and side indicating the work of Pierre-Francois-Mathis de Beaulieu: crowned fleur de lis",
"flanked by two grains de remède above initials PMB with a five-point star; [Assayer Mark] on the interior base",
"lid",
"and side indicating Julien Alaterre: fleur fleuronne; [Warranty Mark] on interior of lid",
"base",
"and side indicating made in Paris in 1771; crowned H; [Mark of Warranty or Décharge] on bezel twice",
"a helmeted man; [Contremarque] on bezel",
"a man’s shoe."
],
"med": "gold, paint, canvas",
"creator_ids": [
"16216"
],
"collection_ids": [],
"exhibition_ids": []
}
Page context
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