Jewellery box - Burrwood - Miniature on the box

Miniature on a jewelry box made of veneer.
Portrait of Elisa Bonaparte (attributed to)
Andrea Appiani (Milan 1754 – 1817), field of

Elegant miniature in late 18th-century style, applied to the lid of a jewelry box in veneered wood, depicting, according to tradition, Elisa Bonaparte, sister of Napoleon Bonaparte and a prominent figure in European culture and politics between the 18th and 19th centuries.

The portrait depicts the noblewoman from the waist up, with a composed and refined attitude, her gaze calm and penetrating, according to an ideal of classical and measured beauty. The gathered hairstyle, the necklace and coral earrings, as well as the dress with a wide neckline, refer to the fashion and symbolic language of the era. In her hand, a small book is visible, a clear reference to intellectual virtues, culture, and the enlightened role of the aristocratic woman.

The pictorial rendering, delicate and precise, with light flesh tones, soft modeling, and a neutral background, recalls the Lombard neoclassical style and can be linked to Andrea Appiani, the foremost interpreter of official portraiture during the Napoleonic era, known for the formal elegance and compositional balance of his female figures.

The miniature is set in a matching circular wooden frame, while the box in burl wood, of fine craftsmanship, retains an antique patina and signs of use consistent with its age, confirming its authenticity and historical value.

Object of great charm and rarity, of high collectible interest, particularly suitable for miniature collections, neoclassical art, and Napoleonic memorabilia, capable of demonstrating the cultivated and private taste of European aristocracy between the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries.