Antique Reliquary Book Pendant Locket

About the Item

RELIQUARY PENDANT IN BOOK FORM Probably southern Germany, 1630–40 Gilded silver, verre églomisé Weight 13.2 grams; dimensions 42 × 25 × 12 mm; opens to 40 mm Gilded silver pendant in book form with hinged, lid, corded wire surround, and engraved spine. The front cover of the book is set with a plaque depicting Moses receiving the Law in verre églomisé, and the back cover shows the Sacrifice of Abraham. The scenes are in gold against a red background. When opened, the book reveals two portraits, probably of a husband and wife, wearing seventeenth-century dress. The costumes suggest a date c. 1630-40; the wife holds a daisy. Trefoil-shaped pendant loop on top and bottom, and book clasp. As in the scenario described for the assemblage of these pendant miniature books (see no. 34), this book may have satisfied the desires of a particular patron, perhaps even one of the Jewish faith. The images that have been chosen for the four verre églomisé inserts are somewhat unusual within the group of comparable objects; on the front is Moses, on the back is the Sacrifice of Isaac. On the inside, instead of an iconic or doctrinal image, one sees portraits of the patron and his wife, in their finest dress, contents reminiscent of a modern locket with photographs of loved ones enclosed. The image of Moses on the front of the book/locket depicts the prophet kneeling before the tablets of the Law and in front of the flaming branches of the burning bush. Moses is speaking with God, gesticulating with a pointing index finger, and looking up to a figure in a bank of clouds above who gestures back. The “horns” that were typical in representations of Moses during this period derived from a mistranslation of the biblical text describing the prophet’s head as surrounded by rays of light (Exodus 34:29).¹ Here his figure glows in gold against red, delineated with fine black lines. The scene of the Sacrifice of Isaac, illustrated on the book’s back cover is, of course, the great biblical demonstration of unquestioning faith. Abraham raises his sword to kill his son as he has been instructed to do by God, while the angel descending from heaven stops the blade just before it can swing down to behead the boy. Inside the book, in contrast to these momentous biblical statements of faith and prayer, we find a very different sort of scene that requires a different sort of looking. Here we are asked to gaze in approval upon a couple, their portraits perhaps included in this object as a commemoration of their marriage. The couple are obviously wealthy, and hold objects and wear clothing that reinforce the perception of their status. The man has a fine and prominent white lace collar and a sword with a very large and elaborate pommel, attached to his person by a prominent belt. The wife stands demurely, holding a flower. In this case, the interior of the little book might have held nothing at all or perhaps it held some sort of personal memento or tiny scrap of paper or parchment with a meaningful text. A surviving design by Hans Holbein the Younger (1497/98–1543) for a book pendant for Thomas Wyatt and his wife, Jane, undoubtedly created when the artist was at the Tudor court in the second and third decade of the sixteenth century, derives a pattern from the patron’s initials. This sort of design, with no religious reference at all, speaks not only to the popularity of book jewels but also to their potential use as markers of identity. Surely this sort of object, even if it was created in commemoration of a marriage, as were so many double portraits, would have been an especially precious family heirloom. Descendants could treasure it for its religious significance and for its value, and on occasion would have opened it to remember and mourn their deceased ancestors. Provenance: Collection of Liuba (1923-2005) and Ernesto (1918-2003) Wolf; their sale. Paris, Artcurial, 1 December 2014, lot 86. They were major collectors of modern and tribal art and antiquarian books and donated their collection of Byzantine and medieval glass to the Landesmuseum Württemberg, Stuttgart. Comparisons and Literature: This fine painting on a miniature scale in verre églomisé with a generous use of gold foil and deep red and blue colors is typical for the Lombardy region beginning in the latter half of the sixteenth century, see Ryser/Salmen 1997, pp. 68 ff. For the technique, see Ryser 1991, pp. 13 ff. The plaques are from this early period. Pendants with similar verre églomisé scenes of the Crucifixion can be found in the Walters Art Museum, Baltimore (Scarisbrick 1978, nos. 498-99); Bayerisches Nationalmuseum, Munich (Knaipp 1988, p. 46); Museo Regionale Pepoli, Trapani (di Natale 1989, fig. 37); for John the Baptist, see Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, inv. no. 17.190.908).

Metal:

Gilt Metal

Weight:

13.2 g

Dimensions:

Width: 0.99 in (25 mm)Depth: 0.48 in (12 mm)Length: 1.66 in (42 mm)

Period:

Mid-17th Century

Date of Manufacture:

1630-1640

Condition:

Wear consistent with age and use.