On Mount Olympus

Large Shell Cameo Depicting Hebe in Gold, England & Italy c. 1850

€ 2,390.00 ^*

Content 1 piece

Incl. VAT, Shipping

Large Shell Cameo Depicting Hebe in Gold, England & Italy c. 1850

Description

This description was automatically translated from German. If you have any questions about this piece of jewellery, we will be happy to help!

This large brooch shows a finely cut cameo from the two-colored shell of a large sea snail. Alongside other shells and snails, the queen sea snail was used in the 19th century to cut cameos from its shell, as the color of the limestone shell is reminiscent of carnelian or orange agate. A scene from classical mythology is depicted. We see the youthful Hebe calmly interacting with Zeus, the father of the gods, in the form of an eagle. The cameo cutter has captured Hebe performing her most important task in the heaven of the gods in an artful cut: She is the cupbearer of the Olympian gods and responsible for preparing the food. Here she serves her father Zeus a bowl of ambrosia, the food of the gods, and a carafe of nectar. Hebe stands in front of a pedestal and is dressed in an ancient peblos, while Zeus approaches as a mighty eagle in flight and feeds on the ambrosia. Homer regularly uses nectar and ambrosia in the Iliad and the Odyssey as the immortalizing food of the gods. In the graduated mythological tradition, Hebe is said to have been replaced in this task by the Trojan prince Ganymede after her marriage to Heracles, who then became cupbearer to the gods. An elaborate setting made of high-carat gold keeps the cameo in the style of the 1850s. We see sculpted curves made from chased sheet gold, reminiscent of acanthus leaves. We discovered the brooch in the south of England, where the Italian cameo was probably set in the middle of the 19th century.

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For centuries, antique cameos and cameos were coveted collector's items in almost all important collections of decorative arts and cabinets of curiosities - from the Green Vault in Dresden and the treasury of Rudolf II to large private collections such as that of Baron von Stosch. In the 18th and 19th centuries, numerous extensive collections of impressions of ancient seal stones and cameos were created, which almost completely documented the pictorial language of ancient glyptic art. These collections were not only an expression of art-historical interest, but also a sign of humanistic education. Figures from the Olympian heaven of the gods or mythological scenes were often the focus of the depictions. Particularly significant for the spread of stone and shell carvings north of the Alps were travelers to Italy, who brought back impressions, carved stones and engraved shells from their educational journeys to enjoy the stories that the shells told. The art of cameo cutter has remained alive in Italy to this day, especially in the Bay of Naples, where the craft is passed down from generation to generation. The Scuola dei Cammei in Torre del Greco is today the only large-scale training center for cameo cutters in Italy - even if, unfortunately, the mythological themes there have increasingly been lost.

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Size & Details

On Mount Olympus

€ 2,390.00 ^*

Content 1 piece

Incl. VAT, Shipping

Our Promise

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You can rely on our years of experience in the trade and our expertise as a professional art historians for reviews of the antique jewellery. As a member of various trade organisations and the British Society of Jewellery Historians, we remain committed to the highest possible degree of accuracy. In our descriptions, we always also indicate any signs of age and defects and never hide them in our photos – this saves you from any unpleasant surprises when your package arrives.

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