Sewing box
Applied Arts
Inventory number
2026.5.4.9.AA.BX.C1820.FR
Description
Sewing box dedicated to the theme of “La Retraite,” constructed from cardboard and richly decorated with printed, painted, and embossed elements. The rectangular body is covered with metallic-looking cardboard panels in relief, imitating chased metalwork. The side panels are ornamented with repeated vegetal and geometric motifs, including scrolling forms, rosettes, leaf patterns, and beaded borders. The upper and lower edges are emphasized with yellow bands marked by fine black vertical lines.
The lid is covered with glass and contains a printed or ink-drawn scene set in a garden or alley. The composition shows a group of elderly figures in coloured clothing, most of them holding walking sticks. The women wear bonnets and long dresses with full sleeves, while the male figure is dressed in a long blue coat and yellow trousers. The group turns toward a small winged boy, who holds a bucket and appears to guide them toward a building identified by the inscription “M-n de Santé”. Beneath the scene, the title “La Retraite” is written.
The lid is framed by a metallic gold border with beaded decoration. Each corner bears an applied symbolic motif: at the upper left, a paper or document with two doves beneath it; at the upper right, a staff and serpent recalling the emblem of Asclepius; at the lower left, an emblematic repoussé-style motif; and at the lower right, a floral bouquet. These corner ornaments reinforce the moral, charitable, and medical associations of the scene.
Inside, the lid contains a mirror, now darkened and placed beneath glass, framed by a narrow gilt border with dotted ornament. The interior is lined with pink cardboard. At the upper part of the box is a mounted half-rounded pincushion covered with green fabric, intended to hold sewing pins. Below it, the inner walls repeat the decorative vocabulary of the exterior, with metallic relief panels, pink cardboard divisions, and gilt edging.
Materials
Cardboard
Metal
Synthetic crepe
Glass
Watercolour
Paper
Origin
circa 1820
France
Dimensions
Width : 3 cm
Length : 10.5 cm
Height : 7 cm