This ventó features unique bright coloured and vibrant shellac painted decoration, characterised by three horizontal rows of stylized flowering plants, bushes and trees, on all its outer elevations and inner door.

It belongs to a specific group of boxes featuring dyed shellac decoration. Despite the existence of furniture with identical ornamentation produced in India’s north-western coast for exporting to the Portuguese market, this cluster suggests a more southern Indian artistic tradition pointing to Chaul.

In addition to our recently identified example, only a handful of similarly decorated ventós are known. Two of these, from the Celso Roboredo Madeira Almendra collection, one other belonging to the Távora-Sequeira Pinto collection, in Oporto.

 

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