17th Century Walnut Nord Italian Cassone

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17th Century Walnut Nord Italian Cassone

About the Item

Magnificent piece of Florentine case goods. This 16th century bridal chest with carved elements creates the perfect balance between negative and positive space in its proportions. Very sturdy and ready to be filled as a hope chest making it the perfect gift for today’s brides as it did over 400 years ago. The caryatid carvings flanking the front two corners are in the images of a young man and woman facing each other. Perhaps the bride and groom? Beautiful workmanship on the hand wrought handles mounted on the sides. Among furniture in Italy, a cassone is a rich and showy type of chest, which may be inlaid or painted, gilded or carved. The cassone (“large chest”) was one of the trophy furnishings of rich merchants and aristocrats in Italian culture, from the Late Middle Ages onward. The cassone was the most important piece of furniture of that time. It was given to a bride and placed in the bridal suite. It would be given to the bride during the wedding, and it was the bride’s parents’ contribution to the wedding. Since a cassone contained the personal goods of the bride, it was a natural vehicle for decoration commemorating the marriage. Great Florentine artists of the time were called upon to decorate cassoni. Some Tuscan artists in Siena and Florence specialized in such cassone panels, which were preserved as autonomous works of art by 19th century collectors and dealers, who sometimes discarded the cassone itself. A typical place for such a cassone was in a chamber at the foot of a bed that was enclosed in curtains. Such a situation is a familiar setting for depictions of the Annunciation or the Visitation of St. Anne to the Virgin Mary. A cassone was largely immovable. In a culture where chairs were reserved for important personages, often pillows scattered upon the floor of a chamber provided informal seating, and a cassone could provide both a backrest and a table surface. The symbolic “humility” that modern scholars read into Annunciations where the Virgin sits reading upon the floor, perhaps underestimates this familiar mode of seating.

Dimensions:
Height: 24 in (60.96 cm)Width: 76 in (193.04 cm)Depth: 21 in (53.34 cm)
Style:
Renaissance (Of the Period)
Materials and Techniques:
Walnut
Place of Origin:
Italy
Period:
18th Century and Earlier
Date of Manufacture:
circa 1600
Condition:
Wear consistent with age and use. Beautiful warm patina. Retains 98% of the original finish.
Seller Location:
New York, NY
Reference Number:
1stDibs: LU78871045118