UNKNOWN GOLDSMITH, Italian
(active 16th century in Florence)

Money Coffer

16th century
Iron, wood, 44 x 87 40 cm
Museo Nazionale di Villa Guinigi, Lucca

Strong boxes and caskets were used for the safe keeping of money and other precious objects during the Middle Ages and renaissance. The box shown here has a solid lock hidden beneath the lid, and hardly any ornamental features, excepts for such practical elements as hooks, handles, and locks, which have been fashioned in a somewhat decorative way.