Ring
ca. 1830 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
The silhouette of a woman with her hair tied back in a classical style has been carved out of helmet shell. Helmet shell was favoured for carving because of its thick layers, which allowed the white and brown layers to be cut away to form a relief design. Shell cameos were a popular souvenir for tourists visiting mainland Europe. Cameos could be decorated with designs taken from classical art or literature or made as personal portraits. The shell was large enough to carve a detailed image but light enough to wear as jewellery.
This cameo has been reset in a ring by the Reverence Chauncey Hare Townshend (1798-1868). Townshend was a poet who was befriended by Robert Southey, William and Dorothy Wordsworth and Samuel Coleridge. He was a friend of Charles Dickens and shared his interest in spiritualism and mesmerism. Dickens dedicated his novel 'Great Expectations' to him and gave him the manuscript copy as well as his crystal ball.
He left his collection of gems and minerals, over 200 pieces of jewellery and a large collection of prints and oil paintings to the South Kensington Museum (now the Victoria and Albert Museum). A catalogue of the gemstones was published by A.H. Church in 1905.
This cameo has been reset in a ring by the Reverence Chauncey Hare Townshend (1798-1868). Townshend was a poet who was befriended by Robert Southey, William and Dorothy Wordsworth and Samuel Coleridge. He was a friend of Charles Dickens and shared his interest in spiritualism and mesmerism. Dickens dedicated his novel 'Great Expectations' to him and gave him the manuscript copy as well as his crystal ball.
He left his collection of gems and minerals, over 200 pieces of jewellery and a large collection of prints and oil paintings to the South Kensington Museum (now the Victoria and Albert Museum). A catalogue of the gemstones was published by A.H. Church in 1905.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Gold with a helmet shell cameo |
| Brief description | Gold ring with a helmet shell cameo depicting the bust of a woman, with fluted shoulders and hoop, in a 'Roman' setting, Western Europe, ca. 1830. |
| Physical description | Gold ring with an oval bezel set with a shell cameo depicting the bust of a classical woman. With fluted shoulders and hoop, in a 'Roman' setting. |
| Dimensions |
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| Credit line | Bequeathed by the Revd. Chauncy Hare Townshend |
| Object history | In one of the standardised settings in the bequest made by the Rev. Chauncey Hare Townshend |
| Subject depicted | |
| Summary | The silhouette of a woman with her hair tied back in a classical style has been carved out of helmet shell. Helmet shell was favoured for carving because of its thick layers, which allowed the white and brown layers to be cut away to form a relief design. Shell cameos were a popular souvenir for tourists visiting mainland Europe. Cameos could be decorated with designs taken from classical art or literature or made as personal portraits. The shell was large enough to carve a detailed image but light enough to wear as jewellery. This cameo has been reset in a ring by the Reverence Chauncey Hare Townshend (1798-1868). Townshend was a poet who was befriended by Robert Southey, William and Dorothy Wordsworth and Samuel Coleridge. He was a friend of Charles Dickens and shared his interest in spiritualism and mesmerism. Dickens dedicated his novel 'Great Expectations' to him and gave him the manuscript copy as well as his crystal ball. He left his collection of gems and minerals, over 200 pieces of jewellery and a large collection of prints and oil paintings to the South Kensington Museum (now the Victoria and Albert Museum). A catalogue of the gemstones was published by A.H. Church in 1905. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | 1800-1869 |
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| Record created | November 7, 2005 |
| Record URL |
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