Vide poche

A collectible from the European Art Nouveau period (ca. 1900–1920).
It is a decorative bowl / historical ashtray (vide-poche) made of reddish-brown veined natural marble. Mounted on the bowl is an ornate metal bust of a child (a Dutch/Zeeland girl) wearing traditional headwear.
The bust is originally signed in the cast on the reverse with “G. Van Vaerenbergh”—a well-known work by the Belgian sculptor Gustave Van Vaerenbergh (1873–1927), who was renowned for his finely rendered portrait busts and collaborations with prestigious workshops of the era.