Description
During the Renaissance, chests ranked among the finest pieces of furniture, permanently installed in bedrooms and state rooms. Whereas painted and decorated narrative scenes had previously adorned Italian palaces, from the end of the 15th century onward there was a preference for natural wood, with a particular predilection for walnut. This costly wood was generally reserved for furniture of prestige.
The elegance of this marriage chest, constructed from fine walnut, lies in its sobriety.
The trapezoidal lid, treated with a cyma molding, is finely shaped. The façade is regularly divided into three panels, the lateral ones decorated with broad glyph motifs. The central panel, left undecorated, accommodates the lock opening.
The lower section, splayed in form, is adorned with finely carved gadroons arranged in a fan shape and deeply carved in high relief from the solid wood. Acanthus leaves decorate the corners of the cassone, while the sides are left entirely free of ornamentation.
The cassone rests on four finely carved lion’s claws.