Oval box (one of a pair)

Johann Martin Satzger I

1761–63 · Silver gilt · European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

Beginning in the seventeenth century, Augsburg was one of Europe’s main producers of silver wares. In the second half of the eighteenth century, when these boxes were made, its main competitors were London and Paris. A royal or aristocratic client who wanted to purchase a toilet service for a wedding gift might solicit proposals from goldsmiths in all three cities, as, for example, an agent for Augustus III did in Dresden in 1747. Johann Martin Satzger I was the preeminent maker of dressing-table sets in Augsburg; many of the leading aristocratic families in Germany commissioned a toilet service from him.

Artist

Johann Martin Satzger I

Date

1761–63

Medium

Silver gilt

Culture

German, Augsburg

Department

European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

Credit line

The Lesley and Emma Sheafer Collection, Bequest of Emma A. Sheafer, 1973