Late 16th century Venetian cedar wood cassone wedding chest featuring finely detailed carving in the champleve decorative style on both the front face and lid interior. Measures: 77" L x 31" W x 29" H with interior space 71.5" L x 26.25" W x 26.5" depth. Imagery & symbolism: Adam & Eve are presented in the Garden of Eden at the Tree of Life with the serpent. Two framed scenes on either side of center suggest the initial meeting of the courting couple and the engagement proposal. Baroque architecture, perhaps Byzantine, with animals pairing in the foreground. Goddesses, cherub quartets with musical instruments, and acanthus vines with pheasants complete the illustration. The front face of the chest depicts cherubs with animal bodies, fashionable courtesans, dancing peasants, and three framed scenes perhaps of the courtship. The flat carving style "intaglio piatto su fondo ribassato" in Italian describes a precise wood decoration technique of carving so as to present a carved yet flat image rising from the flat background surface. Depressions were accomplished with a burin punch, colored with black ink, and filled with red or green colored paste wax. This artistic process was popular from the early 15th to late 16th century. Maker's mark initials "PD" inside on chest floor.

• Condition

  Good Refinished: Professionally cleaned and shellac refinished. Wear consistent with age and use. Minor losses. Minor fading.