Fine Antique French c.1780-1800 Shagreen Etui, Case with Child Portrait Miniature blue-eyed child taupe and blues and nothing

taupe and blues and nothing at all like the colors that emerge once the kiln has melted the enamel powders into the thick glassine finish that some mistake for porcelain

Very clean inside and out

Frame has some age

The pendant would have originally been considered mourning jewelry

This is a fine French box dating between 150-170 years ago

Fine Antique French c.1780-1800 Shagreen Etui, Case with Child Portrait Miniature blue-eyed child taupe and blues and nothingPerhaps the case or 'etui' here is more valuable than the slightly damaged portrait which resides within. These old early cased images like this did not have cover glass and this one has suffered from someone's touch of a damp finger. A child. Perhaps one lost, and that dampness might well have been a parent's tear. The case and image date from French Revolutionary era to perhaps as late as 1810, during which time a lot of upheaval in the lives of the