Narrator: An extraordinary inlaid cabinet. Fine Japanese porcelain. And lavishly gilded figures. A royal or aristocratic residence in late 17th century France would often display luxury pieces like these – often including objects or materials from other cultures.

Let’s zoom in to investigate – starting with the porcelain. Japan was closed to most western trade at this time, so this would have been very rare – and expensive. What’s more, western artisans didn’t know how to produce porcelain yet – making Japanese pieces even more valuable.

The cabinet and gilded figures were made in France. But they have connections to the wider world through French colonization of overseas territories. For instance, the imported ivory, tortoiseshell, ebony and mahogany used in the cabinet’s design were quite possibly taken from newly established French colonies in India and Senegal, West Africa.

In North America, France exploited rivalries between Native Americans to capitalize on the fur trade. Back in France, artists characterized Native Americans as warlike people, wearing feathers. These gilded figures resemble little European children. But their feathered headdresses and skirts play with those stereotypes of Native Americans. They point to the French desire to control resources, territories and people across the world, as they appropriated elements of other cultures as a decorative fantasy.