Virgin and Child Enthroned
Cameo
1475-1525 (made)
1475-1525 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
The art of engraving gemstones can be traced back to ancient Greece in the 8th century BC and earlier. Techniques passed down to the Egyptians and then to the Romans. There were major revivals of interest in engraved gems in Europe during the Byantine era, the Middle Ages, the Renaissance, and again in the 18th and 19th centuries. At each stage cameos and intaglios, these skillful carvings on a minute scale, were much prized and collected, sometimes as symbols of power mounted in jewelled settings, sometimes as small objects for private devotion or enjoyment. The formal composition and elaborate Gothic architecture of the canopy over the Virgin in this cameo suggest a northern European origin. There are parallels with similar groups showing the Virgin on altarpieces in Germany and Switzerland from the 1480s and 90s. Engraved gems often underwent changes of use and setting, sometimes even being recut. This cameo has had a small hole, now plugged, drilled towards the top over the canopy. This was probably a fixing point used when it embellished, along with other engraved gems, a silver gilt cup during the 1600s. The cameo is recorded in the sale catalogue, prior to its acquisition by the Museum, as having been 'formerly set on the summit of the jewelled cup ... where it had been for at least two hundred years.'
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | Virgin and Child Enthroned (generic title) |
| Materials and techniques | Engraved gemstone |
| Brief description | Cameo depicting the Virgin and Child enthroned, oval sardonyx in gold setting; Netherlands or Germany, 1475-1525 |
| Physical description | Vertical oval cameo. Dark brown, milky brown and reddish brown layered agate, variety sardonyx, the sides bevelled towards the front. Depicting the Virgin and Child enthroned under an elaborately decorated canopy. The Virgin is shown facing directly front, half-length, behind a low three-sided balustrade. She is swathed in draperies, crowned and supports the naked Christ child on her knees. Small circular plug visible near centre over top of canopy, filling a hole probably drilled for fixing. Set in a simple gold mount with ring for suspension. |
| Dimensions |
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| Object history | Bought, together with 5 other engraved gems, at or following the Matthew Uzielli Sale, Christie's London, April 12-20 1861, lot 308. Matthew Uzielli (1805-1860) was a wealthy banker, railway magnate and a celebrated collector of paintings and decorative art, for whom John Charles Robinson (the first curator of the South Kensington Museum) sometimes bought objects. Together with the Prince Consort he was the major guarantor of the 1862 International Exhibtion. |
| Historical context | The formal composition and elaborate Gothic architecture of the canopy over the Virgin suggest a northern European origin for this gem. There are parallels with similar groups showing the Virgin on altarpieces in Germany and Switzerland from the 1480s and 90s. C.W. King, in his Handbook of 1885, states that the Gothic style persisted, particularly in the sacred art of France and Flanders, well into the sixteenth century. His opinion of this cameo is that it is "in all likelihood it was the work of some French or Flemish engraver in the reign of François I". According to J.C. Robinson in his 1860 Uzielli catalogue entry for this gem, the cameo 'was formerly set on the summit of the jewelled cup, No.656 in this Collection, where it had been for at least two hundred years; originally, however, it was most likely set as a pendant jewel.' His entry for No.656 refers to a 'cylindrical cup and cover, in silver gilt, set with jewels... and thirty-seven cinque-cento cameos. Seventeenth century work.. most likely of Swedish or Danish origin.' |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Summary | The art of engraving gemstones can be traced back to ancient Greece in the 8th century BC and earlier. Techniques passed down to the Egyptians and then to the Romans. There were major revivals of interest in engraved gems in Europe during the Byantine era, the Middle Ages, the Renaissance, and again in the 18th and 19th centuries. At each stage cameos and intaglios, these skillful carvings on a minute scale, were much prized and collected, sometimes as symbols of power mounted in jewelled settings, sometimes as small objects for private devotion or enjoyment. The formal composition and elaborate Gothic architecture of the canopy over the Virgin in this cameo suggest a northern European origin. There are parallels with similar groups showing the Virgin on altarpieces in Germany and Switzerland from the 1480s and 90s. Engraved gems often underwent changes of use and setting, sometimes even being recut. This cameo has had a small hole, now plugged, drilled towards the top over the canopy. This was probably a fixing point used when it embellished, along with other engraved gems, a silver gilt cup during the 1600s. The cameo is recorded in the sale catalogue, prior to its acquisition by the Museum, as having been 'formerly set on the summit of the jewelled cup ... where it had been for at least two hundred years.' |
| Associated objects | |
| Bibliographic references |
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| Collection | |
| Accession number | 7540-1861 |
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| Record created | September 2, 2004 |
| Record URL |
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