Magnificent and large ormolu and hardstone mounted ebonised wood casket

Magnificent and large ormolu and hardstone mounted ebonised wood casket
French, 19th Century
Height 41cm, width 72cm, depth 52cm
 
Exceptionally fine and richly adorned, this beautiful piece is a large, ebonised wooden casket, mounted with extensive ormolu decorations, and inlaid on front and back with pietra dura hardstone panels. It was made in France in the 19th century, using a host of stylistic influences, and amalgamating various outstanding decorative techniques. The front and reverse are set with hardstone panels, depicting flowers, fruits and insects in the corners.
 
Every facet and structural component of the casket is lavishly adorned with gilt-bronze elements. The corner are mounted with caryatids, holding up Corinthian column capitals, and the sides are adorned with lion's head mounts and handles. A larger, female figurehead surmounts the casket lid, and the edge is profusely decorated with a foliate frieze, interspersed with framed cartouches and scrolling foliate corners. Rich bands of gilding in the form of thrushes and scrolls frame the pietra dura and line the base, which is in turn mounted on scrolling foliate feet. The casket opens up with a sumptuously lined satin interior.