Jewellery box - Rosewood

Old wooden jewelry box with Portuguese silver inlays - Brand Javali. Elegant antique jewelry box, rectangular in shape, made of dark-toned wood, enriched with numerous ornamental inlays in Portuguese silver, bearing the contrasting mark “Javali.” The lid is richly decorated with four large corner inlays, relief-worked with roses, flowers, leaves and vegetal motifs. In the center there is an elaborate silver inlay with a stylized ornamental design, featuring geometric and vegetal elements. The assembly is framed by a carved wooden surround, giving the piece a particularly rich presentation. The metal inlays bear punches compatible with the Portuguese contrastaria of Javali, a mark used in Portugal from the late 19th century to the early decades of the 20th century, allowing dating the piece to roughly 1887–1937. The interior is lined with red fabric, including a padded bottom and pleated side walls, designed to hold jewelry or small personal objects. The box preserves an interesting combination of worked wood, silver and textile lining, characteristic of decorative and toiletry objects produced between the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Condition: signs of use and antiquity compatible with age. The interior fabric shows wear, stains and minor deterioration. The inner face of the lid is scratched. One of the hinge/lateral pieces of the lid fitting system is still missing, so the lid is loose and separable from the box, a condition clearly documented in the photographs. The wood and the inlays also show small marks, scratches, oxidation and superficial wear from use. Dimensions: 4.5 cm (height) × 17 cm (width) × 11 cm (depth).

Materials: wood, Portuguese silver inlays and textile lining.
Contrast: Javali.
Probable period: late 19th century / early decades of the 20th century, ca. 1887–1937.
Probable origin: Portugal.
Condition: reasonable for an antique, with the defects and wear described above and visible in the photographs.