19th Century Yellow Gold Etruscan Revival Portrait Enamel Locket

A rare and exquisite Victorian jewelry suite, comprising a pair of earrings and a matching brooch. Each piece is finely crafted in 18K yellow gold and decorated with hand-painted ena...

Rare Victorian French 18K yellow gold emerald rubellite enamel pearl brooch set with 1 cabochon rubellite, 8 emerald cut emeralds and 4 natural seed pearls Approximate weight: 11.8 ...

This wonderful example of Victorian jewellery was created in 1876. It can be worn as a pendant or a brooch. Condition Report: Excellent The Details... Constructed from 9ct gold, this pendant features an oval porcelain plaque hand-painted with a miniature portrait. The reverse of the plaque is signed by the artist. Their name is difficult to decipher due to ageing. However, their initials appear to be L and M. It is dated 1876. The piece features a bail, so that it can be worn as a pendant. It also features a fastening mechanism, so that it may be worn as a brooch. The pin is attached to the brooch with a tube hinge and the brooch fastens with a traditional safety catch. The piece measures 5.5cm x 4.5cm. A Short History... Whilst the portrait in this piece may appear to depict a young girl with windswept hair, it is actually a portrait inspired by a painting by German artist Gustav Carl Ludwig Richter...

Italian Etruscan revival locked. This is a gorgeous antique medallion-locket created in Italy in the 19th century, circa 1870. The locket has been made up in an oval shape in the Etruscan revival style and carefully crafted in 18kt gilded brass with high polished finish. The medallion locket is decorated with the inlaid portrait of an ancient Etruscan queen, which is dressed with colorful robes, crowned with a diadem and wearing earrings accented with two rose cut diamonds. The profile of the queen is fully decorated with the difficult polychrome enamel technique, called Peinture sur émail. It is fitted with a three-barrels hinge with a snap lock to open and close and a ring bale to wear in a chain. The craftsmanship of this one-of-a-kind piece of jewelry, is exceptional and well done, and surely this will be a great conversation piece. Country: Europe, Italy. Period & Style: Etruscan Revival 1870. Diamonds: Mount in inlaid settings, with 2 European rose cut diamond, 0.07 carat, white colorless F/G color, VS/SI clarity. Weight: 26.95 Grams, (17.30 Dwt). Measurements: 31 mm by 52 mm by 6 mm (1.22 x 2.05 x 0.24 Inches). Hallmarks: Unmarked as usual. Peinture sur émail technique Peinture sur émail is a French type of painting with enamels. It was developed at the end of the 15th century in Limoges, France. In this technique, a slightly convex, metal plate is covered with a fondant of uniform color which was fired to produce a vitreous base for the drawing. On this, the artist starts applying color after color in thin layers onto the base color with a paintbrush. It is vital that one starts with the colors of the highest flowing temperature to avoid the diffusing of colors at a later stage. Between every step, the intermediate depiction needed to be fired in the oven to fixate the colors, sometimes up to 20 rounds of heating are needed for the final result. In this manner, one was able to rival the oil painters of the day and artists such as Leonard Limousin were in high regard, often even employed by the patrons of the arts. Needless to say, that this type of enameling was no longer in the realm of goldsmiths but belonged to those with exceptional drawing skills. At the end of the 16th century the abundance of workshops that produced these artifacts – these could be a meter high – created a decline in craftsmanship which is usually associated with popular cultures. Like Castellani rescued the micro mosaics from general decline by giving it a new impulse so did Jean Toutin from Blois, France give a new incentive to painted enamel in the early 17th century by introducing miniature paintings on enamel of high quality. In Geneva, Switzerland, there was a culture of painting enamels from the late 15th century as well, but the industry only really started to flourish mid-17th century. They specialized in portraits as in scenery images which soon attracted the attention of customers from all over Europe and beyond. Famous Genevan names of the day were Jean Petitot, Jean Etienne Liotard...