Minneapolis Institute of Art

Box for toilet articles

Italy (Naples)LinkedCulture matchlcp-a1b3d47188c0

Date

c. 1745

Medium

Tortoise shell, gold inlay (box) and glass (bottles)

Department

European Art

Institution

Minneapolis Institute of Art

Object ID

3362

This tortoise shell perfume bottle container is fashioned with a piqué technique. The shell was boiled and softened, then shaped and decorated with sheets of gold that locked in place as the shell hardened. This technique was introduced in 16th-century Naples, but soon spread to northern Europe and remained fashionable throughout the 19th century. The shell typically derived from hawksbill sea turtles found in tropical coral reefs. Today the species is threatened. Italy

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