114 - Rock crystal snuffbox decorated with a coin bearing the effigy of Charles III of Spain, China, 1798–1850

Rock crystal snuffbox decorated with a coin bearing the effigy of Charles III of Spain, China, 1798–1850 Decorated with a right-profile portrait of King Charles III of Spain, wearing Roman armor and an antique laurel wreath. The usual circular text of the original coin has been simplified by the Chinese artisan: only the royal numeral “III” remains clearly legible to the right of the profile, the rest having been omitted in favor of a smooth field or a refined stylization. On the reverse, the crowned coat of arms of Spain (the castles of Castile and the lions of León), flanked by the two Pillars of Hercules entwined by a scroll. The rim imitates the characteristic fluting or corded edge (the security reeded edge) of real coins. It rests on a small concave base. The neck of the bottle and the blue glass stopper have been set in European silver. Height: 5 cm Provenance: Millon-Jutheau Auction, Hôtel Drouot, December 12 and 13, 1985, lot no. 133 (illustrated). Publication: Viviane Jutheau, Guide for Collectors of Chinese Snuffboxes, 1980, p. 111, illustration no. 7. In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, the Spanish 8-real silver coin (minted primarily in Mexico and South America) was the primary international currency used by Western merchants to purchase silk, tea, and porcelain in Canton.