19th century Samson enamel snuff box, Lord Nelson

A late 19th-century Samson enamel pill/snuff box, of oval lobed form, the lid decorated with an oval cartouche of a cannon, cannonballs, and 2 anchors, with a surrounding inscription “LIKE NELSON may each Briton be. A friend to king and country.” on a white ground, the body of the box in dark blue enamel with a flared base, the interior in white enamel, with metal mounts.

Marks: Maker’s mark of crossed S’s on the underside of the lid.

Measurements:
Width: 4.8cm (1.9in)
Depth: 3.7cm (1.5in)
Height: 2.2cm (0.9in)                                                                                                                                        Condition: Very good. No damage found. There is a meandering line across the underside of the lid of the box. It does not catch when a fingernail is drawn across it, so is probably original. Here and there, the interior has a light tinge of blue-green leaching through from the underlying copper. The lid closes fully but does not catch. 

Comment: A 19th-century French box emulating an eighteenth-century English box, commemorating an early 19th-century hero of the British but certainly not of the French. 

References: For information on identifying Samson enamel boxes, see Benjamin, Susan. English Enamel Boxes From the Eighteenth to the Twentieth Centuries, Pg:107. Macdonald & Co, 1987.

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