Unidentified artists
Casket (Cofre)late 17th or early 18th century

Not on view

Small wooden casket with domed lid, densely inlaid with cream bone or ivory geometric patterns of diamonds, chevrons, and triangles against a dark ground, with iron lock hardware

Domed casket with dark wood and tortoiseshell body, inlaid with geometric patterns of ivory or bone in triangles, diamonds, and chevrons; two ornate metal hinges and a central clasp on the front.

Artist or Maker: Unidentified artists
Title: Casket (Cofre)
Place Made: Mexico, possibly Campeche
Date Made: late 17th or early 18th century
Medium: Wood, iron, tortoiseshell, and bone
Dimensions: 6 1/8 × 8 1/2 × 5 in. (15.6 × 21.6 × 12.7 cm)
Credit Line: Gift of Ronald A. Belkin, Long Beach, California, in memory of Charles B. Tate, Long Beach, California
Accession Number: M.2014.196
Classification: Furnishings
Collecting Area: Latin American Art
Curatorial Notes: This small casket incorporates bone and tortoiseshell inlay into simple geometric designs, employing a technique known as embutido. Although this type of decoration has been generically described as “Mudéjar” (a term used to reference the persistence of Islamic art in Spain after the Christian conquest), artists looked to a wide range of sources, suggesting broader patterns of transference and circulation. The box features an elaborate lock that virtually overpowers the piece. This suggests that locks were highly appreciated and likely affixed separately by the seller or owner. The fine, aromatic woods used to veneer such luxury boxes were valued not only for their beauty and elegance but also for their durability and protective properties against insects.

Ilona Katzew

2024
Provenance: Michael Haskell Antiques, Montecito, California; Ronald A. Belkin, Long Beach, California, 2007; LACMA, 2014.
Selected Bibliography: Katzew, Ilona, ed. Archive of the World: Art and Imagination in Spanish America, 1500–1800: Highlights from LACMA’s Collection. Exh. Cat. Los Angeles: Los Angeles County Museum of Art; New York: DelMonico Books/D.A.P., 2022.
Díaz Cayeros, Patricia. “Mobiliario novohispano con diseños geométricos: maderas, carey y hueso.” Res Mobils. Revista internacional de investigación en mobiliario y objetos decorativos 10, no 13 (2021): 31–53.
Selected Exhibition History: Archive of the World: Art and Imagination in Spanish America, 1500–1800. June 12, 2022 - October 30, 2022
Archive of the World: Art and Imagination in Spanish America, 1500–1800. October 20, 2023 - January 28, 2024
Archive of the World: Art and Imagination in Spanish America, 1500–1800. June 22, 2024 - September 08, 2024

Related Exhibitions

Unidentified artists
Casket (Cofre)late 17th or early 18th century

Not on view

Artist or Maker: Unidentified artists
Title: Casket (Cofre)
Place Made: Mexico, possibly Campeche
Date Made: late 17th or early 18th century
Medium: Wood, iron, tortoiseshell, and bone
Dimensions: 6 1/8 × 8 1/2 × 5 in. (15.6 × 21.6 × 12.7 cm)
Credit Line: Gift of Ronald A. Belkin, Long Beach, California, in memory of Charles B. Tate, Long Beach, California
Accession Number: M.2014.196
Classification: Furnishings
Collecting Area: Latin American Art
Curatorial Notes: This small casket incorporates bone and tortoiseshell inlay into simple geometric designs, employing a technique known as embutido. Although this type of decoration has been generically described as “Mudéjar” (a term used to reference the persistence of Islamic art in Spain after the Christian conquest), artists looked to a wide range of sources, suggesting broader patterns of transference and circulation. The box features an elaborate lock that virtually overpowers the piece. This suggests that locks were highly appreciated and likely affixed separately by the seller or owner. The fine, aromatic woods used to veneer such luxury boxes were valued not only for their beauty and elegance but also for their durability and protective properties against insects.

Ilona Katzew

2024
Provenance: Michael Haskell Antiques, Montecito, California; Ronald A. Belkin, Long Beach, California, 2007; LACMA, 2014.
Selected Bibliography: Katzew, Ilona, ed. Archive of the World: Art and Imagination in Spanish America, 1500–1800: Highlights from LACMA’s Collection. Exh. Cat. Los Angeles: Los Angeles County Museum of Art; New York: DelMonico Books/D.A.P., 2022.
Díaz Cayeros, Patricia. “Mobiliario novohispano con diseños geométricos: maderas, carey y hueso.” Res Mobils. Revista internacional de investigación en mobiliario y objetos decorativos 10, no 13 (2021): 31–53.
Selected Exhibition History: Archive of the World: Art and Imagination in Spanish America, 1500–1800. June 12, 2022 - October 30, 2022
Archive of the World: Art and Imagination in Spanish America, 1500–1800. October 20, 2023 - January 28, 2024
Archive of the World: Art and Imagination in Spanish America, 1500–1800. June 22, 2024 - September 08, 2024