Casket

It is the second of the two larger caskets belonging to the toilet set of Queen Maria Kazimiera purchased by Stanisław Kostka Potocki on February 27th, 1808 in the Parisian store of De Tournier. It was a gift for his wife Aleksandra, née Lubomirski, in order to enrich the exhibition of the royal apartments of the Wilanów Palace. The theme of the marquetry decoration is the preparations of Venus for the meeting with Adonis. Two paintings by Francesco Albani from the series purchased by Louis XIV in 

1685 for the royal collection served as the prototype for the ebenist. On the lid of the box there is an upper fragment of a painting entitled "The Toilet of Venus"; a composition depicting the clouds on which the chariot of Venus stopped, a cupid with two watered pigeons and a cupid with a boat. On the other hand, the scenes placed on the walls are a bit of a puzzle. Their subjects do not fit into the well-known cycle of four Albani paintings. Only one cupid is identified with the figures of the painting "Venus and Adonis", the rest come from works unknown to us today.

The scene of the front wall depicts the abduction of Europa by Zeus. The rear panel, most heavily damaged over time, has been deprived of many important elements. The trace preserved in the inlay allows us to guess only the contours of the figures. It is a scene of Zeus meeting his beloved, but it is impossible to guess which one.

An object classified as a curiosité due to the elaborate and valuable decoration with marquetry in the style of Boulle, qualifying it as a luxury item, worthy of royal apartments , and due to the high artistic class of the decorations with scenes taken from the paintings of Francesco Albani - a painter appreciated in the Baroque period by Louis XIV and very fashionable during the Enlightenment - Potocki's times. For the count, as a patriot, the history of the entire toilet complex related to the person of the Polish queen, Marie Casimire, was a unique asset.

AK