An important ottoman gem-set, jadeite and tombak-mounted casket, Turkey, 19th century. Photo Sotheby's

of rectangular form, the hinged cover and body comprised of eight facets, each mounted with a jadeite panel outlined with a single row of seed pearls, with foil backed garnets along horizontal sides, on a gilt-metal body, the tombak base engraved with musical instruments, including a violin and a frame of interlacing ribbons, the interior lined with purple velvet, with bespoke box - 2.0 - 12.5 by 11 by 10.4cm. Estimation 60,000-80,000 GBP. Unsold

NOTE DE CATALOGUE: This sumptous casket, set with jadeite panels and bordered with pearls and foil-backed garnets, displays the influence of European luxurious items on Ottoman taste and artistry. 

Probably used to hold jewellery, the casket is lined with deep purple velvet and decorated on the underside with a tombak panel engraved with musical instruments and other items, possibly a hat and a conch shell, associated with abundance. Emblems of sensual and worldly pleasure are often depicted on French and Swiss gold and enamelled objets de vertu and a possible model for this casket's base can be found in a gold vertu box made by Jean Louis Désir
(1776-1781), now in the Victoria and Albert Museum (inv. no. M.350-1940). Such small portable items may have entered Constantinople as gifts carried by dignitaries or members of European embassies, inspiring local craftsmen to produce their own luxurious models for the Ottoman elite

Sotheby's. Arts of the Islamic World. Londres | 25 avr. 2012 www.sothebys.com