18th c. French Silver & Mother of Pearl Box Paris 1753

Description

This is a silver box set with plaques of mother of pearl. First the MOP is carved then surfaced in the indentations with thin silver. Unfortunately the idea was better than the result. A fair amount of the silver has raised off the shell and disappeared. Also the MOP must have come loose as there is a fair amount of glue showing.
Still it is a real mid 18th century French silver box. Unlike most of the boxes advertised in this country as 18th century French this is the real thing. (most boxes you will find advertised as such  aren’t 18th c. and aren’t French). The marks are the chicken’s head décharge mark used from 1750 to 1756. The crowned N mark is the date letter for 1753-4. Unfortunately the makers mark is not well struck, although it is obviously a Paris maker (crowned fleur de lys and two pellets).
The other mark, probably the charge mark, only show the edge of the cartouche. One little piece of MOP is missing. The bottom is silvered steel, or iron. Please look at the photos, to see any damage. If you are looking for imperfections this piece has quite a few. However without a loop and careful inspection, they are hardly noticeable. The scene on the top is particularly interesting showing a gun, dog, hunt horn, lances and a bird, all you need for a day of hunting.  If you have any doubt about the authenticity of this piece please visit our “me” page or ask for references. I have dealt in, and collected early French silver for over 40 years.
Its measurements are 3 1/8” x 2 1/8” x 1 3/8” tall.
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