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Not currently on display at the V&A

Mirror

ca. 1510 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Victorian curators always wanted to associate Museum objects with known historic figures. They believed at first that this mirror was associated with Marguerite de Valois, first wife of Henry VI of France, on account of the decoration of its frame with daisies (marguerites in French). The decoration was then thought to have been a pun on her name. But Marguerite lived between 1553 and 1615, almost a century after the mirror is likely to have been made. However, it also includes two emblems connected with Frederigo da Montefeltro, Duke of Urbino in Italy - the ermine and the goose (perhaps readable as Frederigo's symbol of an ostrich) with an arrow-head in its beak. Frederigo lived from 1422 to 1482 and so it is possible that the mirror could have been made for him or for someone in his household. Images of ermine and ostriches were used in the decorations of Frederigo's studiolo or study , built for his palace in Gubbio, Italy and now in the Metropolitan Museum in New York. This mirror belonged to Jules Soulages (1803 - 1856), a lawyer from Toulouse, whose collection was bought piecemeal by this museum, after being exhibited at Marlborough House between December 1856 and January 1857. It may have been altered or repaired in the 19th-century, just before Jules Soulages bought it.


Object details

Category
Object type
Parts
This object consists of 4 parts.

  • Stand
  • Frame
  • Cresting
  • Mirror Plate
Materials and techniques
Carved walnut with metal mirror plate
Brief description
Standing mirror with metal plate (Italian), about 1510, 7695-1861
Physical description
Carved walnut table mirror with rectangular frame that rotates on a carved, four-sided pedestal. The frame contains a metal plate, polished on one side, rough on the back.

The rectangular frame is carved on both sides with a plain top edge, alternating palmette and anthemion motifs on a densely punched ground, and at the sight edge a narrow guilloche and plain band. On both vertical stiles of the frame the back faces are carved with a guilloche within a leaf and dart border. Mounted as a cornice above the rectangular frame, (and with a similar antependium below), is a pair of S scrolls with acanthus boss, guilloche freize and punched background, between which sits a rectangular block carved with a rough top (perhaps representing freshly dug earth). The front and back faces of the block each contain a rectangular frame with three daisies on a clod or section of turf. Above and below the main frame, between the scroll element and the main frame run ogee mouldings with leaf and dart, two above and one below. The rectangular frame rests on an urn with low relief egg and dart, gadrooning, acanthus, palmette and anthemion motifs. The urn stands on a lobed octagonal platform above the quatrefoil pedestal. Each of the four sides of the pedestal presents a triangular, dished panel with a medallion within coin moulding and enclosed by three triangular compartments with a punched ground and leaf and dart mouldings. The four medallions contain the following emblematic motifs against a densely punched ground: 1) an elephant with a fly on its back, 2) a goose holding an arrow head or nail in its beak, 3) a knot of twisted hair pierced with seven thorns, fastened at the bottom to a base of textile (perhaps for a head dress), and surmounted by a star, 4) an ermine with a blank scroll above it. Below this ‘pyramid’ is an ogee moulding with alternating palmette and anthemion motifs linked by an undulating stem, against a punched ground. The quatrefoil base has been mounted on a modern, stepped walnut foot with an ogee moulding above and below a flat band.

Construction
The top crest consists of three main elements that are probably glued together: 1) the S scrolls and central block are carved from the solid, 2) a leaf moulding, 3) a larger cornice moulding. On the underside, a wedge shaped fillet (broken at one end) has been nailed, which fits a corresponding groove in the top rail.

Frame: the crest fits into the top rail of the frame with a sliding dovetail; by removing this the metal plate can be slid in or out of the frame. Underneath the rectangular frame is a round housing which fits over a plain turned post 8cm high integral with the pedestal urn. The main rectangular frame consists of four sides (each side being a single piece of wood carved on both sides, and grooved inside to receive the plate) joined with mitred dovetails, with some evidence of pegging to lock the joints.

The pedestal consists of four elements: urn and post, pyramid, carved plinth, plain foot. Below the urn and post (a single, turned and carved element), the pyramidal part of the stand with four dished triangular sides appears to be made of one piece of wood to just below the medallions. This is seated onto the quatrefoil anthemion/palmette base, apparently fixed by nails through its four plain bands and the nails covered with wooden caps. At the tips of the four promontories, small infills of wood have been added where losses occurred. Additional plugged nails may secure the urn (via a dowel exension) to the pyramid. The pyramid and base have been mounted to a walnut foot 25mm high with plain moulded edges using a central metal fitting (the hole plugged underneath); this foot appears most likely to be 19th century on the basis of its 'clean' surfaces and pale colour, and may have become necessary if the base had become damaged.

Modifications
The moulded foot must be 19th century in date.
Frame: some nails in the frame were probably inserted at a later date and have stained the wood, and there are filled worm channels on the plain sections of the bottom rail. It seems possible that this plain area has been stripped of some shallow applied ornament. Along the top of the frame top rail, and on both sides of one upper corner walnut facings have been spliced in. Under the bottom rail, damages have occurred at all four corners of the carved leaf and dart moulding.
The sliding crest appears to have been substantially rebuilt, and it seems possible that the scrolls rested on what is now the lower moulding (thus matching the antependium), without the addition of the upper leaf moulding, the colour and carving style do not match other, similar mouldings.

The mirror plate is made of speculum, an alloy of copper and tin with a small amount of arsenic (XRF analysis 2018 by Dr Lucia Burgio).
Dimensions
  • Width: 35cm
  • Depth: 36cm
  • Height: 78cm
From catalogue: The frame stands in height 2 feet 7 inches: the plate of metal is 10 1/2 inches by a little less than 9 inches. (Converted to cm: 78.7cm (plate size 26.7 x 22.3cm). The width and depth represent the measurements of the quatrefoil base, positioned square: 35 x 36cm (or 31 x 32cm, if positioned 'diagonally').
Style
Production typeUnique
Gallery label
MIRROR Carved walnut ITALIAN (probably Venice); about 1510 7695-1861 From the Soulages Collection Before about 1550 most mirror plates were made of steel, and glass versions, like the example here, were considered a speciality of Venice. The finely carved frame, decorated with classical motifs, includes a plinth with a number of emblems: the elephant with a fly on its back illustrates the Latin proverb "the Indian elephant is not afraid of flies", (meaning it is not perturbed by trivia); the goose carrying a pin in its mouth might symbolise the ability to break down large things with small but sharp objects; loose hair represents virginity and plaited or braided hair, as on this mirror, the courtesan or profane love; the ermine was a symbol of purity. The original owner might have been playing with two opposing sets of symbols. It is possible that the daisies (Italian: margherite) in the small plaques at the top and bottom of the frame might have been the emblem of Marguerite of Valois [sic, probably in error for Marguerite de Navarre] (1492-1549) .(Pre-2006)
Object history
Bought for £150 from the collection of Jules Soulages, no.671 'Italian work, c.1440-50'
A photograph of the mirror is included among those taken by Charles Thurston Thompson of Soulages artefacts: pressmark MX 12A X181, ref. 32.799

Lent to the exhibition 'Spiegel. Der Mensch im Widerschein' (Zurich, Museum Reitberg, 17 May to 22 Sept. 2019)

To the Victorians this mirror was associated with Marguerite de Valois, owing to the decoration of its frame with daisies (marguerite in French), then thought to have been a pun on her name. It also has two emblems connected with Frederigo da Montefeltro (1422 - 1482): the ermine and the goose (or ostrich, in the case of Frederigo) with an arrow-head in its beak, which were used in the decorations of his studiolo, formerly in Gubbio, Italy and now in the Metropolitan Museum in New York. This mirror belonged to Jules Soulages (1803 - 1856), a lawyer from Toulouse, whose collection was bought piecemeal by this museum, after being exhibited at Marlborough House between December 1856 and January 1857. This example could possibly date from the 1480s but various pieces were added and replaced at later dates.

Dating of the frame
Since entering the Museum the dating of the mirror frame has varied considerably: the catalogue of the Soulages collection (1856) suggested 1440-50; John Hungerford Pollen's catalogue of furniture in the SKM gave c1475-85; in 1972 Peter Thornton suggested c1500; by c1990 the Furniture dept suggested c1510, but retained the possibility of an original association with Federico da Montefeltro (1422-82).

Dating of the metal plate
The fragility of metal and glass mirror plates and improvements in their manufacture since 1500 mean that the plates in mirror frames have often been replaced. This plate fits the frame precisely, although it is notably heavy when compared to other metal plates found in mirrors such as V&A 218-1866. What is hard to explain in this instance is why the plate is polished on only one side (and undecorated), whereas the frame is double-sided. Metallurgical analysis may help identify the date at which the metal plate was made.
Historical context
On the use of mirrors in the Renaissance see P.K.Thornton, The Italian Renaissance Interior 1400-1600 (London 1991), pp.234-9; Sandra Cavallo, 'Health, Beauty and Hygiene' in Ajmar-Wollheim, Marta and Flora Dennis, At Home in Renaissance Italy, London: V&A Publishing, 2006, p.174 ff

Although small glass mirrors were being made in Germany in the 14th century and in Murano from 1420, steel mirrors were more common than glass ones until well into the 16th century, the largest probably around 40-50cm. Mirrors could also be made of tin, silver or gold. Thornton notes (n6) that steel produced 'the sharpest and therefore the most faithful reflection, its natural colour affecting the natural colours hardly at all.' In Renaissance Italy terms for steel like acciale and azzale were used. The frames of renaissance mirrors were made of various materials such as metal, ivory, silver mounted on wood, carved, gilded, or painted wood, cartapesta (papier mâché) or wood with pastiglia decoration. In Venetian and Florentine inventories of the 16th century, the most frequently listed frame type is carved walnut, often partly gilt, though ebony was also recommended (Dora Thornton, The Scholar in his Study (New Haven, London, 1997, p. 172). The plates (and frames) were protected from scratching, corrosion or spotting by curtains, shutters or cases. 7695-1861 is perhaps likely to have been protected by a textile cover.

Standing mirrors like 7695-1861 are normally assumed to be toilet mirrors, and elaborate examples with highly ornamented frames and flat mirror plates appear in 16th century Italian and French paintings that show attractive ladies at their toilette, such as that at Worcester Art Museum (Mass.), inv. 1932.23, attributed to Francois Clouet c.1570 (see Isabelle Bardiès-Fronty et al., Le bain et le miroir: soins du corps et cosmétiques de l'antiquité à la Renaissance, (Réunion des musées nationaux (France), 2009), Ec.61, p.302-3, and Andrea Bayer (ed.): Art and Love in Renaissance Italy (Metropolitan Museum, New York, New Haven, 2008), no 87). 'Mirrors had many symbolic meanings in the visual vocabulary of the Italian Renaissance: they were attributes of beautiful women, but they could also symbolise vanity, voluptuousness...deceit, prudence (because it revealed truth), humility, and pride.' The association with beauty is crystallized by the entry under the term Bellezza Feminile (Feminine Beauty) in Cesare Ripa's Iconologia, first published in 1593, where one of the attributes is a mirror.' (Bayer, p.226) Mirrors were conspicuous luxuries and an ideal marriage or betrothal gift. Toilet mirrors are most likely to have been kept in the bedchamber or dressing room of the house, and used when arranging one's coiffure, as Gilles Corrozet confirms in his Blason du Miroir, where he describes a Miroir de verre bien bruny/D'une riche chasse garny/Ou la belle, plaisante, et clere/Se void, se mire, et considere... (Mirror of well burnished glass fitted with a rich frame in which the beauty views herself pleasantly and clearly, admires herself and surveys...). Gilles Corrozet, 'Les Blasons Domestiques' (1539), Furniture History, 1989, vol. XXV.

However mirrors carried other meanings, and were recorded in other contexts such as studioli and artists' studies where mirrors (especially convex ones) could be used in various ways: as an optical glass in reading, to focus and concentrate light, and to enhance the appearance of a room with pleasing reflections (see Dora Thornton, pp. 167-74). A standing mirror with flat glass is depicted on Petrarch's desk in his private study (c1400) alongside the instruments of intellectual study, presumably as a source of light (illustrated in Thornton fig.4). Mirrors were used by men as well as women to enhance appearance (Cavallo p178). The growing popularity of mirrors during the 16th century in Italy presumably also reflected contemporary notions of the mind and body: 'the face in particular was seen as the mirror of the soul, of inner virutes and vices, and beauty a divine gift granted to those most deserving' (Cavallo p178). Mirrors could be instruments of vanity but used rightly, it was believed that a mirror coudl strenghten a man's will in his pursuit of virtue and spiritual detachment (Dora Thornton, p.174). The inclusion of heraldic or emblematic symbols on mirror frames such as V&A 7694-1861 and 7695-1861 suggests that using such mirrors - whether in the study or the chamber - was regarded as an appropriate occasion to consider weightier matters of identity and morality.

Gustav Ludwig, p.306 notes that flat mirrors are rarely recorded in Italian Renaissance inventories, but cites one example "specchij cum el pe" (mirror with a foot) - Gustav Ludwig, 'Restello, Spiegel und Toilettenutensilien in Venedig zur Zeit der Renaissance', Italienische Forschungen, Berlin 1906, Volume I; fig.125

Emblems
Two emblems may be connected with Frederigo da Montefeltro, Duke of Urbino in Italy - the ermine and the goose (perhaps readable as Frederigo's symbol of an ostrich) with an arrow-head in its beak. Frederigo lived from 1422 to 1482 and so it is possible that the mirror could have been made for him or for someone in his household. Images of the ermine (with the motto non mai, 'never') and the ostrich (with the motto Ich Kann verdauen ein grosses Eisen 'I can digest a big piece of iron'), set on a clump of turf like the one appearing with daisies in this mirror, were used in the decorations of Frederigo's studiolo or study, built for his palace in Gubbio, Italy and now in the Metropolitan Museum in New York. (See Olga Riaggio and Antoine M. Wilmering: The Gubbio Studiolo and its Conservation. 2 vols (New York, 1999), vol.I p.113 ff.

The elephant with a fly on its back illustrates the Latin proverb "the Indian elephant is not afraid of flies", (meaning it is not perturbed by trivia); the goose carrying a pin in its mouth might symbolise the ability to break down large things with small but sharp objects; loose hair represents virginity and plaited or braided hair, as on this mirror, the courtesan or profane love; the ermine was a symbol of purity. The original owner might have been playing with two opposing sets of symbols. It is possible that the daisies (Italian: margherite) in the small plaques at the top and bottom of the frame referred to a woman called Marguerite, and in the past the mirror was speculatively associated with Marguerite of Valois (1492-1549).
Summary
Victorian curators always wanted to associate Museum objects with known historic figures. They believed at first that this mirror was associated with Marguerite de Valois, first wife of Henry VI of France, on account of the decoration of its frame with daisies (marguerites in French). The decoration was then thought to have been a pun on her name. But Marguerite lived between 1553 and 1615, almost a century after the mirror is likely to have been made. However, it also includes two emblems connected with Frederigo da Montefeltro, Duke of Urbino in Italy - the ermine and the goose (perhaps readable as Frederigo's symbol of an ostrich) with an arrow-head in its beak. Frederigo lived from 1422 to 1482 and so it is possible that the mirror could have been made for him or for someone in his household. Images of ermine and ostriches were used in the decorations of Frederigo's studiolo or study , built for his palace in Gubbio, Italy and now in the Metropolitan Museum in New York. This mirror belonged to Jules Soulages (1803 - 1856), a lawyer from Toulouse, whose collection was bought piecemeal by this museum, after being exhibited at Marlborough House between December 1856 and January 1857. It may have been altered or repaired in the 19th-century, just before Jules Soulages bought it.
Bibliographic references
  • William M. Odom, A History of Italian Furniture (New York, 1918), illustrated p.76
  • The South Kensington Museum. Examples of the works of art in the Museum, and of the decorations of the building, with brief descriptions. Issued in monthly parts, I-XI (1880), XII-XXI (1881), XXII (1882) [Vol. 1. Parts I-XII; NAL: VA.1881.0001] MIRROR FRAME. WALNUT WOOD. No. 7695-1861. I. 9 THE mirror itself is metal: and the frame belongs to the best period of Italian wood carving, when the treatment of classical details in architecture and wood-work was still new, and was managed with an amount of care that was lost when the study of Roman classicalism led to the adoption of vast proportions in structure, and consequent coarseness in the decoration required. The work cannot be put later than the very beginning of the sixteenth century; that is, before the year 1520. Mirrors of so large a size as this were always of metal in the middle ages: although glass undoubtedly was used as far back as the fourteenth century for the small round hand mirrors. The present example was purchased with the Soulages collection. The mirror stands upon a square base with canted angles, shaped like the stem of a chalice or drinking cup. The four large sides rise to within three inches of the frame, gradually diminishing so as to contain four slightly concave panels, which are decorated with carved emblems, each in a circle. The intervening narrow panels on the angles have palmette work, which also runs round the base. Below, is a straight plinth with upper and lower bead mouldings, raising the decorated border on a sort of stand. The emblems in the four panels are—1. An elephant, the meaning of which is not very clear: but may possibly have reference to some story or tradition in the family of the lady for whom the mirror was intended. 2. A goose carrying a pin in its mouth; an allusion, some say, to the classic notions of the fidelity of that fowl. 3. A civet cat, prized for its musk perfume. 4. A knot of twisted hair, fastened at the bottom to a base of velvet or other material for a head dress. The mirror is set upon this stand; but between the two is an interval of about three inches, and this portion is worked into a wide and well shaped baluster with a knop and collars turned in the lathe. By this the mirror was easily held up for use; the knop giving a firm hold for the hand. Small square tablets are placed immediately under and in the middle of the square frame, having on each side scrolls which serve as the main supports. These scrolls and a similar tablet are repeated at the top of the frame. The little tablets have carved on them the device of a small mound with three 'Marguerites' or daisies. The frame itself is ornamtned with delicate line mouldings formed of notches, plait work, guilloches, &c.: with a broad band of palmette leaves outside. These leaves and all the other details are modelled and relieved with great delicacy; and the same tender and beautiful treatment, carried out with most careful and excellent workmanship, is evident in every part. This mirror, upon which no pains nor expense was spared, must have been made for some lady in high position; and the daisies carved upon the little panels suggest that possibly she was Marguerite of Valois, daughter of Charles of Orleans and Louise of Savoy. She was born in 1492; was first married in 1509, and, by her second marriage in 1526 to the king of Navarre, became the mother of Henry the fourth, king of France. She died in 1549. The frame stands in height 2 feet 7 inches: the plate of metal is 10 1/2 inches by a little less than 9 inches. Bought for 150l.
  • Peter Thornton, Capolavori lignei in formato ridotto, in Arte Illustrata, Anno V, n.47, gennaio 1972, (pp. 9-12, pp.50-7, pp.108-110, trans. by Elena Lante-Rospigliosi Translated from the Italian: "The exceptionally beautiful mirror in fig. 6 is also a copy of a metal object, in this case a bronze one. The frame is beautifully carved in walnut and it can be compared with the most beautiful objects made by Italian bronze sculptors. What could be taken for a granular ground pattern at the base was worked with a small steel tool with a pointed tip. The plate is made of polished steel which is now considerably corroded. The carved imprese in the decorative medallions on the base seem to relate to famous Italian families and were undoubtedly made on the occasion of a wedding; if we knew which marriage they describe we would be able to date more closely this extraordinary object of craftsmanship. In fact a study of this object will be published by my colleague Ronald Lightbown who has been studying this object for some time. For the moment I affirm that this mirror can be dated to c.1500 and it deserves to be counted among the masterpieces of decorative art, even by the elevated criteria of the Italian Renaissance."
  • Frieda Schottmüller, Furniture and Interior Decoration of the Italian Renaissance (Stuttgart, 1928), no. 483
  • Murray Adams-Acton, Domestic Architecture & Old Furniture (1929), facing p.34
  • BENN, H.P. & H.P. Shapland: The Nations Treasures. Measured Drawings of Fine Old Furniture in the Victoria and Albert Museum. (London, 1910), plate 5 "...The carved detail is minute, but carried out with the greatest accuracy; there is not a square inch on the whole surface which is not beautifully enriched with carving in very low relief, the Greek honeysuckle being the motif chiefly used..."
  • Wilhelm von Bode, Italian Renaissance Furniture (originally published as Die Italienischen Hausmöbel der Renaissance, Leipzig 1902), fig.58, p.34, 41; translated by Mary E. Herrick (New York, 1921), fig. 76, p.21 "The wall-mirror, on the other hand, like the rarer stand-mirror (an extraordinarily beautiful example of which , in the Victoria and Albert Museum, we return to: Ill. 76), seems to have appeared first toward the end of the Middle Ages..."
  • Ancient and Modern Furniture & Woodwork in the South Kensington Museum, described with an introduction by John Hungerford Pollen (London, 1874), pp. 187-9 Mirror. Burnished metal, in a square frame of walnut wood, with carved mouldings, upheld by a short moulded pillar resting on a quadrangular foot. The whole of the framework carved with emblematical devices, palmette ornaments, &c. Italian. About 1475-85. H. 2 ft. 7 in.; size of plate, 10½ in. by 8 ¾ in. Bought (Soulages Coll.), 150l. This piece is remarkable for its frame. The mirror stands on a base, square, with canted angles shaped like the stem of a chalice or drinking cup. The four large sides rise to within three inches of the frame, gradually diminishing so as to contain four slightly concave panels or spaces, which are decorated with carved emblems each in a circular panel. The intervening narrow panels on the angles are decorated with palmette work, which also runs round the base. Below that is a straight plinth with upper and lower bead mouldings to raise this decorated border on a sort of stand. The emblems in the four spandrils or concave spaces are, I., the elephant, the meaning of which is not very clear. Ancient writers insisted on the reverence the elephant had for the moon (which acts as a mirror or reflection of the sun). Aelian states that at the increase of the moon they gather branches of trees in the woods, and turning their eyes up towards that luminary, raise their branches in adoration. Pliny, speaking of the elephant, says that they ‘withal have in religious reverence (with a kind of devotion) not only the starres and planets, but the sunne and moon they also worship. And in very truth, writers there be who report thus much of them, that when the new moon beginneth to appeare fresh and bright, they come down by whole herds to a certain river named Amelus, in the deserts and forest of Mauritania, where, after that they are washed and purified by sprinkling and dashing themselves all over with the water, and have saluted and adored after their manner that planet, they returne againe into the woods and chases, carrying before them their young calves that be weary and tired.’ [Reference to Pliny, B. VIII ch. I, translation quoted by Mrs. Bury Palliser, Historic Devices, &c. p. 71.] Another side is occupied by a goose carrying a pin in its mouth; an allusion to the classic traditions of the fidelity of that fowl. On a third is carved a civet cat, prized for its musk perfume. The fourth has a knot of twisted hair fastened at the bottom to a base of velvet or other material for a head dress. The use of ‘chignons’ and other artificial additions to a lady’s hair is not an invention of our own day. The frame of the mirror is set on this base or stand. Between the two is an interval of about three inches, and this portion is formed into a wide baluster or leg with a knop and collars turned in the lathe. By this the mirror itself was easily held up for use, the knop giving a firm hold for the hand. The frame is square finished with S-shaped scrolls rolling over each side of two square tablets, one above and one bellow the top and bottom portions. On the little square tablets are carved the device of a small mound with three ‘Marguerites’ or daisies on them. The scrolls and square between them form the outline of the ‘bow’ of the god of love. The frame is decorated with delicate line mouldings formed of notches, plait work, guilloches, etc. and further has a band of palmette leaves carved all round. These leaves are modelled and relieved with great delicacy, and if the work is examined, de same tender treatment of these minute ornaments will be noticed throughout. It belongs to the best period of Italian wood carving, and its date may be placed before or at the beginning of the 16th century, while the treatment of classical details in architecture and woodwork was still new, and was managed with a degree of care that was lost when the study of Roman classicalism led to the adoption of vast proportions in structure and boldness and coarseness in the decoration that was required in consequence. The daisies carved on the framework, as well as the exceptional delicacy and excellence of the carving, point to the ownership of a lady of the name of Margaret in high position, possibly Marguerite d’Valois, daughter of Charles d’Orleans, Comte d’Angoulȇme, and Louise of Savoy. This lady was born at Angoulȇme in 1492, and became the wife, first, of Charles IV, Duc d’Alençon, in 1509; secondly, of Henri D’Albret IV, second King of Navarre, in 1526. By this marriage she had a daughter, Jeanne d’Albret, mother of Henri IV. She died at the Chateau of Odos en Bigorre in 1549. This princess was a patroness of letters, and was surnamed the Pearl, Margarita, the tenth of the Muses, &c. and her name was celebrated by the poets and artists of the day. There is in the Louvre a piece of miniature carving in boxwood, an [Greek letter Omega?]containing delicately sculptured compositions from the life of St. Margaret of Antioch, who suffered martyrdom under the reign of Aurelian. That M is supposed to have been made for , or in honour of, Marguerite de Valois; and the allusive carvings on this mirror may indicate that it was made for the same personage. But this is offered as a conjecture only.
  • Catalogue of the Soulages collection : being a descriptive inventory of a collection of works of decorative art, formerly in the possession of M. Jules Soulages of Toulouse ; now, by permission of the Committee of Privy Council for Trade, exhibited to the public at the Museum of Ornamental Art, Marlborough House (London, Chapman & Hall, 1856), p. 178-179 No 671. Metallic Toilet Mirror, with carved frame and stand, in walnut-wood. Italian work circa 1440-50. Height 1 ft. 6 in., size of the mirror-plate 10 ½ in. by 8 ¾ in. This exquisite work cosists of a square frame, with richly carved mouldings, into which the plate is fitted, upheld by a short moulded pillar resting on a quadrangular foot. The decoration is entirely in the revived classical style, exhibiting beautiful renderings of palmette ornaments, guilloche and acanthus-leaf mouldings, and within the triangular panels of the foot are four circular medallions, carved with emblematical devices in relief, as follows: I. an elephant; 2. A lighted link or torch (formed by twisted strands of tarred rope?) with a star above; 3. A swan or goose carrying a nail in its beak; 4. A beaver or otter, with a blank open label scroll. On the mirror are two small square panels containing each the same device, which it is somewhat difficult to describe, the object represented not being recognizable. It resembles a small oval patch of ground, on which are laid three rosettes, or tufts or grass, or star-fish. There can be little doubt but that this interesting utensil was the property of Sigismund Pandulpho Malatesta, lord of Rimini, or of his celebrated mistress, Isotta degl’Atti (called Isotta da Rimini). The elephant was their favorite device, and may be seen on the reverse of the well-known medal of Isotta an example of which exists in this collection (No. 485). The marked classical style of this piece, carried out with exquisite taste and feeling, is just what would have been expected from its origin. Malatesta was one of the greatest patrons of artists of his period, and was, morover, a passionate admirer of the antique. He employed the celebrated architect Leon Battista Alberti to build him a church at Rimini (San Francesco), which is still quoted as one of the earliest and most important monuments of the revival. The beautiful mirror now in question agrees entirely with the architectonic sentiment of the church; and it is not improbable that it was executed from a design of the celebrated architect just mentioned. Nothing can exceed the spirited carving of the details; they are replete with all the finesse of a great sculptor, whilst the proportion of the several parts, profiles of the mouldings, &c. are perfect.
  • Albert von Lutz, Spiegel Der Mensch im Widerschein. (Zurich, Museum Reitberg, 2019), cat. no. 126 unillustrated [museum no. wrongly given as 76595-1861] and pp. 172-3
Collection
Accession number
7695-1861

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Record createdApril 15, 2003
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