Antique c. 1790-1810 French Empire Gaming or Game Box, Coffret, Chest with Chips
A lovely and very old cards or gaming chest, complete with some of the original round gambling chips that came with it. This is a latest 1700s to earliest 1800s transferware decoupage decorated wooden coffret,complete with many French Empire scenes of exotic tableau, peoples and fashion of its time. The box is beautifully crafted of wood, is raised on pressed ormolu feet and still has the original working lock with key. Four lift-out decorated gambling trays for 4 players, and space to house cards and chips. The cards shown with it are for scale and are not included in the offering (not antique). The chest is 9.75" x 8" and is 4.75" tall when closed. Very good to excellent condition for age and type. The layered intaglio prints and varnish have darkened some over time, particularly the one on top of the box, probably it has had additional layers of varnish. The interior is gorgeous, a spectacular example of this genre and era. You can see a few very small imperfections here or there in