|
The tortoiseshell obtained from the carapace of a certain turtle fascinated the people of the sixteenth century because of its transparency, coloration and patterning. The material, when softened in boiling water, could be pressed into large plates and could even be shaped into three-dimensional forms to produce caskets, bowls, horns, combs and even bottles. The present heart-shaped bottle was originally created in Central America, and the silver foot-stand was added in the Iberian peninsula, when the object was adapted for display in the princely collection of Archduke Ferdinand II of Tyrol.
|
