Received in 2008 ich After many decades of waiting, I finally had the opportunity to take a voluntary and sufficiently long break from my job as a freelance IT consultant to fulfill a dream I had had for a long time: a jewelry box!
I was passionate about trying out what I might be capable of in terms of craftsmanship. My choice therefore fell on making a very elaborate jewelry box in the style of the Renaissance - my favorite epoch.
After days of studying the literature available to me, I found that the work of Wenzel Jamnitzer from Nuremberg in the late 16th century were particularly popular. At that time he was one of the most famous goldsmiths and supplied all German emperors during his lifetime. I wanted to get inspiration for various details from his work.
It was to be a box with a hinged lid, veneered with burl wood, small pillars at the corners, claw feet and specially decorated drawers. But the most important thing: it should have large and elaborate gemstone settings all around in the style of the High Renaissance.
First, I carved out a “core” of the box entirely from wood with a sliding “secret compartment” before gilding the entire box with real gold leaf.
I then made resin replicas of Corinthian columns, placing them at all four corners. The compartments for the jewelry were lined with red velvet and the lid received a gilded monogram.
The root wood was given a shellac polish and the brand new gold plating was painstakingly trimmed back to its “old” appearance. The rock crystal geode on the lid of the jewelry box was carefully “recolored” 😉 and a small chest lock with a beautifully shaped key was also installed.
I decorated the small drawers with mannerist decoration and ram head handles made of self-made “ivory”, the molded ornaments came from a silver-plated Cup from the Neo-Renaissance after a model by Cellini.
The proportions of my jewelry box were certainly not the end of the story and poor Cellini would probably run away screaming at the sight of the hardware store hinges at the latest if he knew what had become of his preparatory work. 😉
However, I was very satisfied with my “first work” and it laid the foundation for a passionate desire to continue to be able to make such things myself.
In any case, I will never forget the big eyes and the pleasantly long moment of speechlessness when the person I gave her received her birthday present:
