TRÈS BEAU ET RARE COFFRET À CORAN (SUNDUQ) EN... Lot n° 5

PROBABLY BY THE WORKSHOP OF GIUSEPPE PARVIS (D. 1909), EGYPT OR SYRIA, CIRCA 1900 Of square form, resting on four splayed feet, the hinged lid with sloping sides, the rims with applied bands and domed cabochons, richly inlaid decoration, the top with a central roundel of inscriptions, the outer walls with inscriptions in kufic and thuluth, on a background of geometric interlacing, the interior covered in wood and mother-of-pearl, decorated with geometric motifs in marquetry. Width: 27 cm; Depth: 27 cm. Height : 21 cm. Acquired in Egypt before 1952. Part of the office furniture of Émile Baraize (Cairo 1874-1952). Then by descent. This box (Sunduq) is of exceptional quality, belonging to a very small group of boxes distinguished by their very rich decoration, inlaid exclusively with gold and silver. The use of gold on this type of object is highly exceptional. Only a handful have appeared for sale. See, for example, the catalog of Christie's London sale, Indian and Islamic Works of Art, April 29, 2005, lot 409, and more recently, in the same house: October 27, 2022, lot 168. This object sat on the desk of Egyptologist Émile Baraize throughout his mission in Egypt.