An early 18th century Florentine ebonized wood aedicule case with gilt metal embellishments

Ambit of Leonard van der Vinne
Possibly first decade of the 18th century; Florence, Italy
Approximate size: 83.5 (h) x 69 (w) x 23 (d) cm

The cabinet’s centralized glass door is flanked by thick spiraling Solomonic columns surmounting a lower drawer. To the rear of the cabinet, the motif repeats in an eloquent display of perspectival treatment. The overall work is supported by a tiered base, elegantly conceived, and the cabinet is topped by a handsome pediment flanked by square plinths crested by gilt metal finials and an openwork frieze.

The cabinet’s tempered and moderate form suggests an origin probably during the first decade or quarter of the 18th century. Although utilitarian in concept, the reserved and sublime expressiveness of this cabinet is managed with a quality and care respective of the influence of Florentine ebony cabinetry work conceived in the Galleria dei lavori or Grand Ducal Workshops of the 18th century Medici dynasty. In particular, its base mouldings echo a remarkable Night Clock by the Galleria dei lavori now in the Getty Museum (Inv. 97.DB.37) whose cabinetwork was conceived by the Flemish woodworker and intarsiatore, Leonard van der Vinne, a possible candidate to whom the present cabinet could hypothetically owe its influence.