54

Tobacco scratcher with polychrome enamels, Limoges, 17th century

Height x width: 17 x 6.5 cm. Weight: 39 g.
oval shaped metal, decorated with polychrome enamels depicting in the centre a miniature portrait of a noblewoman, set in a frame, with a bucolic background showing two sheep on the left and, at the top, floral decorations.
On the back, the grater typical of these tools is missing, a generally rough or toothed part. The tobacco grater in the 17th century was a tool used to prepare snuff, as tobacco was sold in leaves or in compressed bunches, and therefore had to be reduced to a fine powder in order to be inhaled according to the common usage of the time. 
Snuff was very popular among the European upper classes in the 17th century, considered a sign of sophistication and social status.
23/01/2025 14:01:23
Lot closes
1g -24h 0m 0s
Time left
€ 800,00 / 1.200,00
Estimate
600,00 €
Starting price
 €
Your bid
(The reserve price has not been exceeded) (The reserve price has been exceeded)
Set your maximum bid
  EUR
Offer
Live auction 327

Curiosities from European and Oriental art
Silvers, Ivories, Corals, Icons, and Wunderkammer

Palazzo Caetani Lovatelli, tue 25 February 2025
FIRST SESSION    25/02/2025   Hours 12:00 pm  
Lots 1/167
SECOND SESSION    25/02/2025   Hours 04:00 pm  
Lots 168/346