AN ITALIAN GILT-BRONZE MOUNTED PIETRA DURA AND EBONIZED CASKET

This magnificent Florentine casket, richly mounted with exquisite pietra dura panels can be firmly attributed to the Grand Ducal workshops, and was probably made under the supervision of Giovanni Battista Foggini (1652-1725), who was director of the workshops under Duke Cosimo III (1670-1723).

The spectacular creations of the Galleria dei Lavori, which was originally founded by Ferdinand I Medici in 1588, were admired in all the courts of Europe, and were often offered as diplomatic gifts by the Medici. Louis XIV even consciously tried to create his own version of the Galleria dei Lavori as he imported Italian craftsmen such as Domenico Cucci when he founded the Gobelins workshops in 1667. A closely related casket from the Grand Ducal workshops was sold anonymously at Christie's, New York, 20 May 2014, lot 224 and another sold anonymously at Christie's, London 6 July 2012, lot 4.