Necklace
1850 (made)
| Place of origin |
This set of jewellery, comprising necklace, bracelet and earrings, has the unusual and technically impressive feature that each panel is double-sided. The wearer could choose between the two most popular decorative themes - with either the monuments of Rome or figures in regional costume uppermost.
The term 'micromosaic' is used to describe mosaics made of the smallest glass pieces. Some micromosaics contain more than 5000 pieces per square inch. The earliest attempts at micromosaic revealed visible joins between the pieces (known as tesserae) and a lack of perspective. Later artists such as Antonio Aguatti made huge advances in micromosaic technique, resulting in renderings that were truer to life. Glass micromosaic technique developed in the 18th century, in the Vatican Mosaic Workshop in Rome, where they still undertake restoration work today.
Sir Arthur Gilbert and his wife Rosalinde formed one of the world's great decorative art collections, including silver, mosaics, enamelled portrait miniatures and gold boxes. Arthur Gilbert donated his extraordinary collection to Britain in 1996.
The term 'micromosaic' is used to describe mosaics made of the smallest glass pieces. Some micromosaics contain more than 5000 pieces per square inch. The earliest attempts at micromosaic revealed visible joins between the pieces (known as tesserae) and a lack of perspective. Later artists such as Antonio Aguatti made huge advances in micromosaic technique, resulting in renderings that were truer to life. Glass micromosaic technique developed in the 18th century, in the Vatican Mosaic Workshop in Rome, where they still undertake restoration work today.
Sir Arthur Gilbert and his wife Rosalinde formed one of the world's great decorative art collections, including silver, mosaics, enamelled portrait miniatures and gold boxes. Arthur Gilbert donated his extraordinary collection to Britain in 1996.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Parts | This object consists of 2 parts.
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| Materials and techniques | Gold and blue glass |
| Brief description | Gold, micromosaic and blue glass necklace, part of a suite of jewellery. Possibly Rome, ca. 1850. |
| Physical description | Part of a suite of jewellery comprising a necklace, bracelet and pair of earrings, all composed of gold-chain-linked ovals of micromosaic set into blue glass bordered in gold. This set is unique in that it has mosaics on both sides, one side depicting Italian peasants in regional costumes, the other depicting monuments and ruins. |
| Dimensions |
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| Gallery label |
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| Credit line | The Rosalinde and Arthur Gilbert Collection on loan to the Victoria and Albert Museum, London |
| Object history | Historical significance: Representations of peasants often dressed in regional folk costumes are relatively rare in micromosaics. There are other examples in the Gilbert Collection set into snuffboxes and a bracelet. |
| Historical context | Mosaics of peasants were often based on engravings by Bartolomeo Pinelli (1781-1835) which were published in Rome in 1816. |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Places depicted | |
| Summary | This set of jewellery, comprising necklace, bracelet and earrings, has the unusual and technically impressive feature that each panel is double-sided. The wearer could choose between the two most popular decorative themes - with either the monuments of Rome or figures in regional costume uppermost. The term 'micromosaic' is used to describe mosaics made of the smallest glass pieces. Some micromosaics contain more than 5000 pieces per square inch. The earliest attempts at micromosaic revealed visible joins between the pieces (known as tesserae) and a lack of perspective. Later artists such as Antonio Aguatti made huge advances in micromosaic technique, resulting in renderings that were truer to life. Glass micromosaic technique developed in the 18th century, in the Vatican Mosaic Workshop in Rome, where they still undertake restoration work today. Sir Arthur Gilbert and his wife Rosalinde formed one of the world's great decorative art collections, including silver, mosaics, enamelled portrait miniatures and gold boxes. Arthur Gilbert donated his extraordinary collection to Britain in 1996. |
| Associated objects | |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | LOAN:GILBERT.150:1,2-2008 |
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| Record created | June 26, 2008 |
| Record URL |
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