A finely engraved silver tobacco box

A finely engraved silver tobacco box

The box of octagonal section, the vaulted lid with accolade-shaped end to either side, centred at the inside with a scallop surrounded by acanthus leaves, the outer border with serrated edge, the central plate engraved with a scene from the Old testament, recorded in 2 Samuel 6:4, representing the story of David arriving in Jerusalem with the Ark of the Covenant, the underside also engraved with a depiction of the Apostle Peter, who is liberated from captivity by an Angel of the Lord, whilst the guards, fast asleep, stay behind, as is related in Acts 12. This scene is flanked by stylised scallop motif surrounded by scrolling foliage.

Liberation of Peter, Jan Luyken, 1706, Rijksmuseum Amsterdam, RP-P-1896-A-19368-2439

Evert Bot was born after 1684, the son of Johannes Bot and Maria Schoonenbergh, in a reformed family. Father Bot was a glazier. Evert Bot entered his mark in the Amsterdam silvermith guild in 1744 and specialised in engraved tobacco boxes, such as the one discussed here. In 1774 he has a studio in the Leidse Dwarsstraat. He was the business partner of his brother Jan, who was born in 1692, and who also worked as a silversmith in Amsterdam from 1740.