Spanish?? Inkwell

[dartsil]

Hello all.

I wonder if anyone can assist with this very interesting inkwell. I think Spanish but I could be wrong, one mark I can not make out, the one on both sections whilst a bit rubbed looks a bit like a pot of flowers mark used 1700-1800 but is this piece that old? the last is VEGA but I can find nothing of a maker VEGA.

Any help would be appreciated and apologies if I have suggested Spanish and that is not the case.

Regards,
Colin

[dartsil]

Hi all,

A friend with a wealth of knowledge has solved this one for me.

Diego de la Vega y Torres was appointed assay master in Cordoba in 1804, a position he occupied during the following six years.

When reelected in 1817, his nomination was contested as he had last been reappointed to this position in 1810, during the period of French occupation at the time of the Napoleonic Wars: the seriousness of this irregularity, together with other accusations, resulted in his being excluded from office.

This means that Francisco de Paula Martos (F. Martos), the silversmith part of whose mark appears on the inkwell but , is the maker of the inkwell and Diego de la Vega y Torres is the assay master and not the maker.

This would mean that the date of this piece would be between 1804, the date of Vega's first appointment, and 1817, the date of his exclusion.

[dognose]

Hi Colin,

Thanks for updating the topic, it's appreciated.

Trev.

[AG2012]

Hi,
Rampant lion seen on the inkwell (image cropped and rotated here) was used in Cordoba in 19th century.
Regards

[Funkel]

It is indeed the silversmith Francisco de Paula Martos, but it is not an inkwell, but a soap dish.
This type of pieces for personal hygiene appeared in the Bourbon court from the reign of Felipe V.
I attach some similar pieces.

Efectivamente se trata del platero Francisco de Paula Martos, pero no es un tintero, sino una jabonera.
Este tipo de piezas para el aseo personal, aparecieron en la corte de los Borbones a partir del reinado de Felipe V.
Adjunto algunas piezas parecidas






"José Manuel Cruz Valdovinos. El esplendor del arte de la plata. Colección Hernández-Mora Zapata. Murcia, 2007"

[AG2012]

Hi,
Examples shown by Funkel are very convincing in regard of soap boxes.
On the other hand, transforming the box into the inkwell was extremely difficult and unlikely in this particular case because of perfectly fitting semicircular glass insert, almost impossible to find. Attaching a screw was much easier task, though. Ebonized wooden base does not look almost 250 years old.
In a word, it is still a mysterious object, at least to me.
Regards