A very fine Embriachi marquetry casket in light wood, ebony, - Lot 12

A very fine Embriachi marquetry casket in light wood, ebony, bone, stained bone and pewter fillets A very fine Embriachi marquetry casket Northern Italy, 15th century Embriachi workshop H. 23.4 cm; L. 36.4 cm; W. 22.5 cm Provenance : Jean-Michel Guéneau Collection, Paris. Comparative bibliography: L. Martini, Botttega degli Embriachi. Cofanetti e cassettine tra Gotico e Rinascimento, exhibition catalog, Brescia, 2001. This rectangular, tomb-like casket, with a recessed doucine lid, is made in alla certosina marquetry, combining bone, green-stained bone, ebony, light wood and pewter fillets on a resinous structure. The decoration features geometric interlacing with chequered and star motifs, and friezes of Greek, chevron and triangle motifs. It is adorned at all four corners with tortoiseshell-covered twisted columns, and stands on four flattened ball feet. The lid's projection is adorned with an engraved frieze of foliage, enriched with representations of rabbits and flowers, while the base is encircled by a similar frieze, embellished with flowers, winged putti heads, rabbits and birds. The keyhole is framed by a later period crowned cartouche in gilded metal. Condition: good (a bone missing from the branch of a star on the lid). The Embriachi workshop, whose name is associated with the Italian family of sculptors, was originally founded in Florence before being transferred to Venice in the 1430's. Specializing in the technique of certosina, a refined marquetry combining ebony, bone and horn, this workshop acquired a reputation that extended beyond the borders of northern Italy. Its prestige extended as far as Burgundy, where the Embriachi family was commissioned to produce numerous pieces, including those for Philip the Bold, Duke of Burgundy. Although several caskets of similar form and decoration were shown at the Brescia exhibition in 2001 (cf. Martini, nos. 21 to 29, for example), the engraved friezes on ours are a rarity.