Small cabinets for travelling and storage of precious items had long been a staple in Europe, though their sophistication rose as the Renaissance’s ideas of enlightenment, power and symbolism through objects. Regional examples relied on their artistic traditions and access to materials. Cities like Augsburg, for example, near to the Black Forest and the Alps, produced Schreibtische with ornate and intricate wood carving and marquetry (See Christie’s, London, 15 November 2017, lot 306). In Spain, the escritorio or vargueno made use of ivory, bone and shell inlay with patterns reminiscent of Moorish design, while the Low Countries often utilized colorful silk embroideries (see Christie’s, New York, 18-19 October 2023, lot 128).

This lovely jewel-like cabinet enrobed in a leather case was most probably conceived in the lacquer workshops of Venice in the late 16^th or early 17^th century. It was natural that Venice, with its extensive trade contacts within the Mediterranean, should be one of the first artistic centers of Europe to imitate the wares of the East, most particularly lacquer. This table cabinet, decorated with delicate foliate gilt-japanned tendrils was clearly inspired both by the lacquer boxes of Persia and also by the damascene work produced by Eastern metalworkers through which gold and silver were inlaid into steel in intricate patterns; and the architectural design ‘with colorful marble slabs cut into roundels and squares are arranged very much like those seen on the facades of Venetian palaces of the early 16th century’ (Huth, Lacquer of the West, p. 6).

Further, the inclusion of a dizzying variety of inlays including marbles and semi-precious stones was a favorite of Italian decoration. The use of such stones in the ancient Roman Empire mosaics and architecture was revived in the mid-sixteenth century thanks to a series of Roman excavations (see Massinelli, Hardstones, p. 9) and ancient stones were often re-used to create new objects. Intricate marble marquetry (pietra dura) flourished in Florence under the direction of the Medici family while the ancient metropolis Rome tended toward stately hardstone use in as impressive architectural fittings.