Snuffbox 1730 - 1765

Curator: This exquisitely ornamented object, held here at the Met, is a ceramic snuffbox created sometime between 1730 and 1765. What strikes you most immediately about it? Editor: Its intimate scale is arresting, coupled with the intensely personal nature of what it contained: ground tobacco. It whispers of hidden rituals and individual indulgences, hinting at a bygone era of powdered wigs and courtly life. Curator: Indeed. Considering its period, the snuffbox serves as a potent marker of social identity. Tobacco use was intertwined with colonialism, class, and even gender. Access to finely ground tobacco and equally fine containers like this one declared privilege. The elaborate scenes on the lid likely served as conversation starters, narrating power as much as delight. Editor: Absolutely, there are visual cues aplenty. The lid seems to depict figures engaged in leisurely activities against a palatial backdrop, evoking ideals of pastoral tranquility and aristocratic leisure. Also, the cherubic face nestled amidst the floral carvings lends a whimsical yet reverential air to the object. In psychological terms, one might consider it as an appeal to innocence or purity associated with holding it, in sharp contrast with the user's intentions and substance use! Curator: Your observation speaks directly to the symbolic potency of these objects. The rococo style, with its characteristic embrace of asymmetry and playfulness, can be viewed through a Foucauldian lens—a space of social practice and controlled liberty. While ornate decoration allowed for expression, social protocols for usage—and for *owning* such pieces—would police behaviours of the individual within that specific time period. Editor: True. And I notice too, beyond social constructs, an aesthetic kinship. It feels as though the artist had infused it with a quiet sort of spirit...it speaks to me. The motifs carry emotional echoes through centuries; luxury has rarely felt as bittersweet as it does now. Curator: Perhaps that sense of transience contributes to its continued resonance today. These objects allow us a tangible encounter with an often obscured or prettified historical reality. Editor: Yes, thank you; I think, today, its gentle yet pervasive mood invites contemplation, prompting us to confront complexities and class while appreciating artistry.