16th century, Bottega degli Embriachi, Venice or Florence, Small Chest

16th century, Bottega degli Embriachi, Venice or Florence Small Chest Bone and wood, 14 x 12 cm Sealing wax on the bottom This casket is a classic example of the work of the renowned workshop of Baldassare degli Embriachi. The object represents the meeting of Florentine business acumen and Venetian refined taste, during a transitional period between the late Middle Ages and the early Renaissance. The work is distinguished by precise decoration executed with the "Certosina" inlay technique, which is the true trademark of this workshop: it is a language composed of repeating geometric patterns. The decoration, created by fitting together small pieces of bone, horn, and colored woods with extreme precision, reflects the Embriachi's desire to offer sober and dignified luxury. The repetition of star and diamond patterns gives the object a solid and timeless beauty, perfect for the market of the era. The Bottega degli Embriachi, probably of Genoese origin but established as a leading entrepreneurial entity in Florence and Venice between the late 14th and 16th centuries, represents a pinnacle of late Gothic craftsmanship. Founded by the merchant and diplomat Baldassarre Ubriachi (or Embriachi), a multifaceted figure also active as a banker and political agent for the Visconti, the workshop specialized in the systematic working of bovine or equine bone. This technical choice, which replaced the rarer ivory with vertically juxtaposed decorated lamellae, allowed for the large-scale production of sacred and secular objects, framed by complex wooden and bone inlays defined as "Certosina" for their geometric precision. The body of works is divided into two main areas: large religious commissions and the production of domestic objects for the aristocracy. The absolute masterpiece is the monumental dossal of the Certosa di Pavia (1400-1409), commissioned by Gian Galeazzo Visconti from Baldassarre. This polyptych features a vast narrative cycle dedicated to the life of Christ, the Virgin, and the Magi, drawing extensively from apocryphal tales. It is complemented by other monumental works such as the dossal from the Abbey of Poissy (now at the Louvre) and dismantled chests from Casa Cagnola in Milan. Although these large altarpieces sometimes exhibit a certain monotony due to the repetitiveness of the lamellae and narrative fragmentation, the workshop achieves its highest expressive success in smaller objects, where the sober architecture of the forms perfectly complements the ornamentation. In addition to the large dossals, the Embriachi's production is universally known for its wedding caskets and mirror frames (such as those preserved at the Bargello in Florence or the Museo Civico in Bologna). The caskets, generally quadrangular with a pitched roof or polygonal pyramidal lids, housed iconography dear to the courtly culture of the time: from the tales of Mattabruna and the Golden Eagle to classical myths of Jason, Pyramus and Thisbe, Paris, and Theseus, all reinterpreted according to the gentle and chivalrous taste of the period. The style, more contained and plastic than the fluid linearity of French Gothic, reflects the Tuscan roots of the family, whom documents recall in Florence before their move to the Venetian lagoon. After Baldassarre, the activity was carried on by members of the family, including Andrea, Antonio, and Giovanni, with Giovanni's sons, Geronimo and Lorenzo, who kept the workshop active until the mid-15th century and early 16th century. Critics tend to distinguish the production into two phases: an earlier one, directly linked to Baldassarre, and a later one, characterized by a progressive formal rigidity despite the persistence of Gothic modes. Today, the works of the Embriachi are distributed in the most prestigious world collections, from the British Museum and the Victoria and Albert Museum in London to the Metropolitan in New York and the Grünes Gewölbe in Dresden, while in Italy significant collections are preserved in Venice (Museo Correr), Bologna, Ravenna, Catania, and Turin, testifying to the incredible commercial and artistic success of what was the first true "industry" of luxury art objects in Italy.