Beschreibung:

A continental 19th century silver presentation casketunidentified marker's mark struck four times, possibly Viennese circa 1870 Of oval canted form, with hinged domed cover and filigree thumbpiece, deep construction using highly decorative panels, intricately embossed in high and low relief with theatrical emblems, commedia dell'arte masks, musicians, angels, fruit and various images of the Vienna State Opera House alongside classical temples, gilt interior, all on a spreading base featuring scrolls, fruit and foliage, atop a wooden plinth with a silver presentation plaque dedicated to the opera singer Adelina Patti in German, translated to 'In honour of the brilliant artist Adelina Patti from the members of the Vienna Court Opera, with grateful memories of her first performance there on 6th October 1873', height with stand 30cm, length 32cm, weight 52oz.FootnotesThe 'Vienna State Opera' is an opera house and opera company based in Vienna, Austria. This 1,709 seat Renaissance Revival venue was built from 1861 to 1869 following plans by August Sicard von Sicardsburg and Eduard van der Nüll and designs by Josef Hlávka The opera house was originally inaugurated as the 'Vienna Court Opera' (Wiener Hofoper) in the presence of Emperor Franz Joseph I and Empress Elisabeth of Austria. It became known by its current name after the establishment of the First Austrian Republic in 1921. When the internationally acclaimed prima donna Adelina Patti (1843-1919) first took to the stage there in 1873, it was a major coup for the Vienna Court Opera, which had not long been open. Patti was the Adele of her day, an operatic superstar, and for a new venue it was a fantastic PR opportunity. Hence the fuss made of Patti after her first performance there on 6th October 1873, when Director Steiner handed this especially commissioned silver presentation casket to her on stage. The press widely reported the event, and were told that the casket was 'an antique and over 400 years old', which appeared to be contradicted by the fact that it had views etched on it of the newly built Vienna Court Opera. Adelina Patti was born into a musical family in Madrid on the 19th February 1843, to a Sicilian father and an Italian mother, both of whom were opera singers. The family moved to New York in 1847, living in the Wakefield section of the Bronx, where her home still stands. Her parents recognised her vocal potential early and at the age of just seven Patti appeared in concerts across New York City. The child prodigy dazzled audiences, performing her first operatic role in 1859 aged just sixteen as the lead in Gaetano Donizetti's Lucia di Lammermoor, winning huge critical acclaim. Patti developed into a coloratura soprano with perfectly equalised vocal registers and a surprisingly warm, satiny tone. Her supreme talent derived from the quality of her voice and the 'vocal gymnastics' she was able to perform, apparently effortlessly. As a known beauty, she also shone as an actress, and achieved notable success in comedy operas such as Mozart's 'Don Giovanni'. Patti toured the musical capitals of Europe, travelling internationally as a major star for the next 20 years, not returning to the United States until the early 1880s. As the famous composer Giuseppe Verdi wrote in 1877, she was a "stupendous artist", being perhaps the finest singer who had every lived - a view shared by music critics and social commentators of her era. When Adelina Patti performed in Vienna and received this casket, the Chicago Tribune wrote 'Vienna is just now in ecstatic bliss over the artistic singing and acting of Adelina Patti ... she stands now at the zenith of artistic perfection. Her still youthful appearance, coupled with the dramatic power which a long experience on the stage has imparted her, makes her, aside from her great vocal talent, the foremost of lyric artists of the day ... The price of admission is very high - 60 florins a box, and 10 florins for a seat; but when you hear