RECTANGULAR TABATIERE IN 18k (750) GOLD Master goldsmith Jean Ducrollay, received in 1734 Paris, 1747-1748 With guilloché decoration on all sides of wavy fillets, the clasp with concealed hinge, engraved on the throat: DUCROLLAY PLACE DAUPHINE A PARIS; small dents, scratches, wear to the corners and restoration to a corner of the lid. Marks: No goldsmith's hallmark Common house: crowned letter G, for 1747-1748 Charge: one arm, for Paris, 1744-1750 Discharge: a salmon head Post-verification: small guarantee for the gold, (eagle's head twice) H. 3.5 cm (1 ½ in.) L.: 7,8 cm (3 in.) P. 5 cm (2 in.) Weight : 175 gr. Comparative bibliography : V. Bastien, Les Ducrollay - De prestigieux orfèvres parisiens au XVIIIe siècle, L'OBJET D'ART, Juillet-août 2006, N° 415 ; p. 60-69 V. Bastien, Étude de la production et de la diffusion des tabatières et des objets de luxe à Paris sous Louis XV et Louis XVI. L'exemple de l'atelier des orfèvres Ducrollay, Drais et Ouizille, Paris, 29 November 2013. A gold snuffbox, by Jean Ducrollay, Paris, 1747-1748 Jean Ducrollay (1710-1787) was one of the most renowned goldsmiths in Paris for gold snuffboxes; he began his apprenticeship on 26 February 1722 with his uncle, the great goldsmith Jean Drais, who sponsored him to become a master in 1734. His brother Jean-Charles Ducrollay (1712-1766) also worked in the family workshop, as did silversmiths Louis Roucel and Pierre-François Drais. His clientele included Madame de Pompadour (1721-1764), for whom he made a magnificent gold coffee grinder dated 1756-1757 (coll. Musée du Louvre, inv. OA 11959). From 1760, he became goldsmith and jeweller to the crown and between 1751 and 1771 delivered many snuffboxes and jewels to the royal administrations, in particular for diplomatic gifts.