Writing Box

Italian (Manifattura di Signa, Florence?)

ca. 1900 · Copper alloy with reddish brown patina and areas of a worn black patina on top. · Robert Lehman Collection

This writing box is decorated with winged putti holding a laurel wreath with a Medusa head, surruonded by a rectangular band of palmettes on the cover. The front and back sides have a pair of centaurs carrying nymphs on their backs (Nessus and Deianeira?) and flanking the Medici coat of arms beneath a Tuscan crown on a pelta. This popular type of writing casket exists in various versions and was produced well into the twentieth century. Reproductions were offered by the Manifattura di Signa, Florence, in 1912. This box belongs to that category of late reproductions.

Artist

Italian (Manifattura di Signa, Florence?)

Date

ca. 1900

Medium

Copper alloy with reddish brown patina and areas of a worn black patina on top.

Culture

Italian (Manifattura di Signa, Florence?)

Department

Robert Lehman Collection

Credit line

Robert Lehman Collection, 1975