Locket and Chain thumbnail 1
Locket and Chain thumbnail 2
Image of Gallery in South Kensington
On display at V&A South Kensington
Jewellery, Rooms 91 to 93 mezzanine, The William and Judith Bollinger Gallery

This object consists of 2 parts, some of which may be located elsewhere.

Locket and Chain


This brooch is set with the profile portrait of a fashionably dressed man, signed Miers. The reverse of the locket holds a curl of hair, bound with pearls and gold thread, suggesting that it was a gift to a close friend or lover.

John Miers was born in 1758 at Quarry Hill, Leeds and died on the 2nd of June 1821, probably at his house and workshop at 111 Strand, London. He was the most celebrated profilist or silhouette artist of his period.
'Profiles' or ‘shades’ were an affordable and fashionable form of portraiture. They became even more fashionable after about 1775, when Johann Kaspar Lavater published his hugely popular Essays on Physiognomy. He claimed that one could detect a person’s character by concentrating on his or her main features. These would reveal both virtues and vices. Lavater illustrated the book with numerous simple black profiles. Miers would certainly have been aware of Lavater’s work. As a Nonconformist, he attended the Dissenting Chapel in Hull and later, Dr Hunter’s Chapel, London Wall. Henry Hunter had visited Lavater in Zurich in 1787 and received permission to translate his work on physiognomy into English.

Miers advertised his services liberally. Until he settled at his house on the Strand in London, he travelled to various large cities and was visited by customers intending to have their silhouettes done. The process, advertised by Miers as producing ‘Most striking Likenesses taken in One Minute upon an entire New Plan’ involved the sitter being placed between a bright light and a sheet of paper. The outline of the shadow was traced onto paper which could then be used to paint onto ivory or card made to the size required.

An advert placed by Miers in Newcastle gives an idea of the appeal of the process:
“At Mr. Bellows, Glover, High Bridge, where he takes the Most Perfect Likenesses in Miniature Profile on a much improved Plan, that in point of Likeness and Elegance, exceeds every other Profiles that have yet appeared. He humbly solicits those who please to favour him with their commands, that they will take the Earliest opportunity, as they may depend on a Perfect Likeness, in an elegant gilt frame and Glass at 5s. each, or reduced on ivory for Rings, Pins, or Bracelets at the same price.
N.B. Ladies and Gentlemen having by them Shades of their Living or Deceased Friends may have them reduced to any size. The Likeness preserved and dressed in the present Taste.”

The resulting profiles or shades were put in frames, lockets, pins and rings and given to family, friends and lovers. Public figures and celebrities were also popular such as the actress Mrs Siddons, whose portrait Miers proudly advertised.

John Miers was succeeded by his son William who was a jeweller, engraver and frame maker and claimed on his trade card that he ‘preserved all the original profiles for nearly half a century, and can supply copies of every size without the necessity of sitting again.’


Object details

Categories
Object type
Parts
This object consists of 2 parts.

  • Locket
  • Chain
Brief description
Locket, gold with hair, enamel, pearl, gold thread and ivory painted in watercolour with a silhouette by John Miers, England, about 1810, associated with a gold chain.
Credit line
Given by the American Friends of the V&A through the generosity of Patricia V. Goldstein
Summary
This brooch is set with the profile portrait of a fashionably dressed man, signed Miers. The reverse of the locket holds a curl of hair, bound with pearls and gold thread, suggesting that it was a gift to a close friend or lover.

John Miers was born in 1758 at Quarry Hill, Leeds and died on the 2nd of June 1821, probably at his house and workshop at 111 Strand, London. He was the most celebrated profilist or silhouette artist of his period.
'Profiles' or ‘shades’ were an affordable and fashionable form of portraiture. They became even more fashionable after about 1775, when Johann Kaspar Lavater published his hugely popular Essays on Physiognomy. He claimed that one could detect a person’s character by concentrating on his or her main features. These would reveal both virtues and vices. Lavater illustrated the book with numerous simple black profiles. Miers would certainly have been aware of Lavater’s work. As a Nonconformist, he attended the Dissenting Chapel in Hull and later, Dr Hunter’s Chapel, London Wall. Henry Hunter had visited Lavater in Zurich in 1787 and received permission to translate his work on physiognomy into English.

Miers advertised his services liberally. Until he settled at his house on the Strand in London, he travelled to various large cities and was visited by customers intending to have their silhouettes done. The process, advertised by Miers as producing ‘Most striking Likenesses taken in One Minute upon an entire New Plan’ involved the sitter being placed between a bright light and a sheet of paper. The outline of the shadow was traced onto paper which could then be used to paint onto ivory or card made to the size required.

An advert placed by Miers in Newcastle gives an idea of the appeal of the process:
“At Mr. Bellows, Glover, High Bridge, where he takes the Most Perfect Likenesses in Miniature Profile on a much improved Plan, that in point of Likeness and Elegance, exceeds every other Profiles that have yet appeared. He humbly solicits those who please to favour him with their commands, that they will take the Earliest opportunity, as they may depend on a Perfect Likeness, in an elegant gilt frame and Glass at 5s. each, or reduced on ivory for Rings, Pins, or Bracelets at the same price.
N.B. Ladies and Gentlemen having by them Shades of their Living or Deceased Friends may have them reduced to any size. The Likeness preserved and dressed in the present Taste.”

The resulting profiles or shades were put in frames, lockets, pins and rings and given to family, friends and lovers. Public figures and celebrities were also popular such as the actress Mrs Siddons, whose portrait Miers proudly advertised.

John Miers was succeeded by his son William who was a jeweller, engraver and frame maker and claimed on his trade card that he ‘preserved all the original profiles for nearly half a century, and can supply copies of every size without the necessity of sitting again.’
Other numbers
  • LOAN:AMERICANFRIENDS.104-2003 - Previous loan number
  • 60 - Goldstein Collection number
Collection
Accession number
M.113:1, 2-2007

About this object record

Explore the Collections contains over a million catalogue records, and over half a million images. It is a working database that includes information compiled over the life of the museum. Some of our records may contain offensive and discriminatory language, or reflect outdated ideas, practice and analysis. We are committed to addressing these issues, and to review and update our records accordingly.

You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.

Suggest feedback

Record createdJune 17, 2008
Record URL
Download as: JSONIIIF Manifest