Grand Tour Decorative Boxes
For 18th-century young British noblemen, no education was complete without a year on the Grand Tour. Although it had no official route, the Grand Tour focused on places foundational to European art, literature and architecture, including sites in France, Germany, Switzerland and, most importantly, Italy. It was an opportunity not just to witness the roots of the classics they had studied but also to take some of it home. Grand Tour furniture was among the souvenirs.
Grand Tour furniture ranged from marble architectural models replicating ancient wonders to actual antiquities often taken illicitly, leaving a legacy of looting still being unraveled today. Other items reflected the artistic richness of the Renaissance cities and other destinations. In Italy, this included scagliola tables and pedestals mimicking marble as well as tabletops and wall panels embedded with pietra dura hard stone mosaics.
Furniture was also developed to display Grand Tour purchases in the owner’s home, presenting them as a cultivated and well-traveled person. Mahogany collector’s cabinets held objects like intaglio moldings of coins and seals while others had specialized drawers that framed pietra dura panels.
Many objects were specifically produced for Grand Tour collectors. Often accompanied by retinues on journeys lasting months or years, the elite travelers, the wealthiest of whom extended their trips to Egypt and the Holy Land, required artful personal mementos befitting the experience. For example, Grand Tour micromosaics — small artworks, most not more than two inches wide — arose from the entrepreneurial impulses of artisans who had trained in the Vatican’s workshops.
Grand Tour journeys would help inform a range of decorative styles such as neoclassical, Rococo and Adam style. (Architect and designer Robert Adam toured Italy and France for five years.) The Grand Tour flourished at a time of economic prosperity and political stability, but the French Revolution in 1789 brought it to an end. Yet as the tradition faded in popularity in England, the rising wealth of the United States led to an increase in tourism across the Atlantic and a similar passion for collecting to show one’s worldliness.
Find a collection of Grand Tour decorative objects, wall decorations, lighting and other furniture on 1stDibs.
Early 19th Century French Antique Grand Tour Decorative Boxes
Gold, Enamel
1950s Italian Vintage Grand Tour Decorative Boxes
Marble
Late 19th Century Italian Antique Grand Tour Decorative Boxes
Steel
Late 19th Century Italian Antique Grand Tour Decorative Boxes
Slate, Bronze
Late 19th Century Italian Antique Grand Tour Decorative Boxes
Olive
Early 19th Century Italian Antique Grand Tour Decorative Boxes
Brass
Mid-20th Century Italian Grand Tour Decorative Boxes
Leather, Wood
19th Century German Antique Grand Tour Decorative Boxes
Silver
Mid-19th Century Italian Antique Grand Tour Decorative Boxes
Wood
19th Century Indian Antique Grand Tour Decorative Boxes
Antler, Horn
Late 19th Century Italian Antique Grand Tour Decorative Boxes
Bronze
20th Century Italian Grand Tour Decorative Boxes
Leather, Burl
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Grand Tour Decorative Boxes
Stone, Brass
Early 19th Century Vatican Antique Grand Tour Decorative Boxes
Metal
Mid-19th Century French Antique Grand Tour Decorative Boxes
Brass
Early 1900s French Antique Grand Tour Decorative Boxes
Crystal, Ormolu
Early 1900s French Antique Grand Tour Decorative Boxes
Crystal, Ormolu
1890s French Antique Grand Tour Decorative Boxes
Bronze, Enamel
19th Century Italian Antique Grand Tour Decorative Boxes
Marble, Bronze
Mid-20th Century Indian Grand Tour Decorative Boxes
Wood
Mid-20th Century Lebanese Grand Tour Decorative Boxes
Fruitwood
19th Century Italian Antique Grand Tour Decorative Boxes
Silver
1990s Italian Grand Tour Decorative Boxes
Sterling Silver
1890s American Antique Grand Tour Decorative Boxes
Wood
1840s Italian Antique Grand Tour Decorative Boxes
Marble, Siena Marble
Mid-19th Century Italian Antique Grand Tour Decorative Boxes
Stone, Metal
Early 19th Century English Antique Grand Tour Decorative Boxes
Walnut
Late 19th Century Italian Antique Grand Tour Decorative Boxes
Cherry, Maple, Nutwood
20th Century Italian Grand Tour Decorative Boxes
Sterling Silver, Enamel
20th Century Italian Grand Tour Decorative Boxes
Marble
1920s Italian Vintage Grand Tour Decorative Boxes
Alabaster
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Grand Tour Decorative Boxes
Stone, Brass
Late 20th Century Grand Tour Decorative Boxes
Velvet, Glass
Late 19th Century Italian Antique Grand Tour Decorative Boxes
Stone, Marble, Bronze
19th Century French Antique Grand Tour Decorative Boxes
Belgian Black Marble, Bronze
19th Century English Antique Grand Tour Decorative Boxes
Sterling Silver
19th Century French Antique Grand Tour Decorative Boxes
Crystal, Ormolu
20th Century Indian Grand Tour Decorative Boxes
Lapis Lazuli
Late 19th Century Italian Antique Grand Tour Decorative Boxes
Marble









