Important Modern & Vintage Timepieces

Hong Kong, Jul 23, 2020

LOT 52

“R • P / C”; the enamel attributable to Jean-Louis Richter
“Tabatière” pill-box; 18K yellow gold and enamel

HKD 61,000 - 78,000

CHF 7,400 - 9,500 / USD 7,800 - 10,000

18K yellow gold and enamel, round-shaped “tabatière” pill-box; base and band decorated with Royal blue flinqué enamel (translucent enamel over guilloché engine-turning) panels, the base with a starry decoration of golden paillons.
The lid with a scene showing a young horseman, standing next to his beautiful white stallion, giving a charming young woman a white handkerchief that she must have dropped; the background shows a view of the Mont-Blanc, painted on enamel on gold attributable to JeanLouis Richter (1766-1841), Geneva.


Grading System
Grade: AAA

Excellent

Case: 3

Good

Brand Unsigned, Geneva

Model the enamel attributable to Jean-Louis Richter (1766-1841), Geneva

Year circa 1800

Dimensions Ø 55 mm. / Weight 51 gr. (gross)

Signature case

Notes

Richter, Jean-Louis (1766-1841)
Learned his art in Geneva under David-Etienne Roux and Philippe-Samuel-Théodore Roux, becoming a most renowned enamel painter. His speciality was the painting of landscapes and particularly lake-side scenes and marine-scapes, often representing ships in a harbour or battles with fighting Men-of-War, but, on occasion, also portraits and hunting scenes. He did not often sign his work, but it is clearly recognised as being in his hand from the style and quality of the painting. He applied his art principally to watch cases and snuff-boxes and these were largely destined for the Chinese, Turkish, British and Italian markets. In 1828, he was in partnership with Aimé-Julien Troll (1781-1852) and one can find work signed “Richter et Troll”. Richter, like other great enamel painters of the time, often found inspiration for his work from paintings or engravings by the artists then in fashion particularly Claude Vernet or the romanticised English and Irish rural life.