Renaissance Objets d'Art and Vertu

Eighteen karat Buccellati style vintage brooch, handmade in Italy Brooch designed in Florentine textured Floriform theme brooch in the style of marked "ITALI / 18K." Brooch measuri...

Fine antique European Renaissance style ruby, sapphire, emerald and amethyst encrusted reticulated silver box, 19th Century. The intricate top features approximately 8 carats of emer...

Reliquary Pendant with Crucifixion Germany, 1450–1500 Gilded silver Weight 88.3 grams; dimensions 102 × 39 × 11 mm (with chain), 46 × 39 × 11 mm (w...

Reliquary Pendant in Book Form Southern Germany, probably Augsburg, c. 1550 Gilded silver, verre églomisé Weight 14.1 grams; dimensions 35 × 29 × 13 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 glass plaque depicting the Nativity in verre églomisé; the back cover shows the Annunciation. When opened, inside is Christ as Ecce Homo under a trefoiled arch, and opposite is a relic (missing) surrounded by a golden aureole against a red background. Trefoil-shaped pendant loop on top and bottom, and book clasp. Nothing could be more satisfying, intellectually and devotionally, than combining the functions of the personal reliquary and the book. One opens and looks into either with the expectation of encountering knowledge and truth. In the case of this tiny book, there are no words, only pictures, but ample satisfaction nonetheless derives from the revelation of the holy images and perhaps even the material presence of a relic secreted within the tiny, precious covers. The fashion for miniature book jewels seems to have emerged in the sixteenth century. Romina Ebenhoech has identified eight very similar surviving examples with verre églomisé images. The three examples in this collection represent a significant proportion of the surviving corpus. An early publication on the book pendants suggested that the metal frames and the inset reverse-painted glass were manufactured separately, which could well be the case. If so, the individual books may represent a personalized devotional object with four images selected by the patron, each a separate jewel painted in red and white and glowing with gold. In his Autobiography, Benvenuto Cellini recommended gold-glass reverse painting as an appropriate medium for the production of reliquaries. It responds especially well to the flickering nature of candlelight (as on altars). In this example, the front of the book represents the Nativity and the back the Annunciation, inverting the narrative order, but perhaps satisfying devotional needs. The patron might have wished to have the Nativity as the primary image—especially appealing here in the Bridgettine vision of Mary praying before the newborn Christ, who glows brighter than any light, even the candle held by St. Joseph. Opening the book, however, triggers a different mode of more affective devotion. Confronting the viewer at the core of the little book is the body of Christ. This is the Ecce Homo, the moment in the Gospel story when Christ was presented before Pontius Pilate. The image gained currency after 1500, following the format of the Man of...

Renaissance 36 carat Amethyst Compact Vanity Box or Necklace Rare find 3.5 x 2.75 inch metal box with Hand Painting picture of 17th Century is signed by artist. Excellent colors a...

The Wild West writing instrument is crafted from a combination of leather & sterling silver 925. The barrel features an illustration in scrimshaw depicting a cowboy riding a horse. I...