Box with scene depicting Roman hero Gaius Mucius Scaevola before the Etruscan king Lars Porsena

Box with scene depicting Roman hero Gaius Mucius Scaevola before the Etruscan king Lars Porsena

P R

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The rhythmic composition of the chased scene on this large snuffbox is the work of one of London’s most skilled goldsmiths, George Michael Moser. Moser had a prominent place in the diverse artistic community of the mid-1700s and was one of the founders of the Royal Academy. The scene on the box depicts the Roman hero Mucius Scaevola, who demonstrated his bravery to his captors by holding his hand in a blazing fire. The circumstances of its commission are unknown.

European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Box with scene depicting Roman hero Gaius Mucius Scaevola before the Etruscan king Lars PorsenaBox with scene depicting Roman hero Gaius Mucius Scaevola before the Etruscan king Lars PorsenaBox with scene depicting Roman hero Gaius Mucius Scaevola before the Etruscan king Lars PorsenaBox with scene depicting Roman hero Gaius Mucius Scaevola before the Etruscan king Lars PorsenaBox with scene depicting Roman hero Gaius Mucius Scaevola before the Etruscan king Lars Porsena

The fifty thousand objects in the Museum's comprehensive and historically important collection of European sculpture and decorative arts reflect the development of a number of art forms in Western European countries from the early fifteenth through the early twentieth century. The holdings include sculpture in many sizes and media, woodwork and furniture, ceramics and glass, metalwork and jewelry, horological and mathematical instruments, and tapestries and textiles. Ceramics made in Asia for export to European markets and sculpture and decorative arts produced in Latin America during this period are also included among these works.