Papier mâché, polychrome oil painting on black lacquer, brass hinge
Brunswick, Germany, 1st third of the 19th century
Presumably Stobwasser Factory (1740-1863) – manufacturer for lacquer goods
Titled on the inside of the lid in red ‘Le régard de soupçon’ and numbered ‘591.’
Dimensions: 1.8 x 9 x 6.3 cm
Good condition
Provenance: German private collection
Stobwasser tobacco boxes are sought-after collectibles due to their exceptional miniature painting; this snuff box is particularly appealing due to the humorous scene depicted on the cover

This fine lidded round snuff box ‘Le régard de soupçon’ (the suspicious look) was most certainly made by the renowned company Stobwasser in the early 19th Century. Typically for Stobwasser the lid is decorated with a skillfully rendered lacquered oil painting. This example in portrait format shows a heated scene filled with jealousy. An elderly couple is seated on a sofa and helping himself to “forbidden fruits”, which does not go unnoticed by his wife.



The snuff box is in good condition with some signs of age. The lid shows fine craquelure and material loss in the corners. Titled on the inside of the lid in red ‘Le régard de soupçon‘ and numbered ‘591.’. The dimensions are 1.8 x 9 x 6.3 cm (height x length x width).



Stobwasser Factory (1740-1863)

The manufactory Stobwasser was established in 1740 by Georg Siegmund Eustachius Stobwasser. Georg Stobwasser started trading haberdashery; the trading of lacquered goods was introduced by his son Johann Heinrich Stobwasser in 1757. In the 1760s the Bayreuth margrave Friedrich III commissioned a large number of lacquered boxes as well as drinking vessels and cups. In 1762 the entire family Stobwasser moved to Brunswick on the wish of the Duke Carl I., who promised them some money for production, citizenship as well as free accommodation. After having a few difficulties, business soon picked up and the repertoire of lacquered goods extended. Shell pouches, drinking vessels, snuff boxes and even furniture was part of their range. In 1768 Stobwasser was commissioned to lacquer state carriage of Friedrich the Great. Thereon the company gained the sole privilege of calling their goods ‘Brunswick lacquer ware’.



The products were laboriously crafted from papier mâché, wood and rolled tin plate and iron sheet. To guarantee the high quality of the décor Stobwasser opened its own painting school in 1780 run by the renowned Brunswick artist Pascha Johann Friedrich Weitsch (1723-1803).