Because over and over again...

Vintage brooch with shell cameo of aurora after Guido Reni, around 1950

€ 790.00 ^*

Content 1 piece

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Vintage brooch with shell cameo of aurora after Guido Reni, around 1950

Description

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

"For always, always the sun rises / And again a day brings a light for us" What Udo Jürgens knew was equally clear to the ancients: the sun's course across the sky repeats itself every day. Numerous works of art have depicted this procession of the aurora across the firmament, the most famous of which is probably a fresco by the hand of Guido Reni from the casino of Palazzo Rospigliosi. The fresco was commissioned in 1612 by Cardinal Scipione Borghese and completed in 1614. Reni was inspired by Raphael and ancient works of art, such as the relief of the Borghese Dancers, which is now in the Louvre. Following the fresco, but mirror-inverted, the cameo shows the goddess of dawn Aurora accompanied by a cherub with a torch, symbolizing the morning star. Aurora is followed by seven hour goddesses, as well as the four-horse chariot of Apollo. Aurora scatters rose petals and thus spreads the dawn over the world. The goddess floats, against a background of clouds, in a slight upward motion from left to right, casting the awakening day over a coastal landscape with both hands. Aurora looks backward at the torch-bearing cherub hovering above the heads of Apollo's four horses, illuminating the scene. Apollo on his chariot as well as the hour goddesses surrounding him also stride on clouds from left to right, following the dawn. The fresco from Rome was repeatedly translated into the medium of prints and became extraordinarily popular. One of these copperplate engravings, perhaps the 1787 print from the hand of Raphael Morghen, will have been available to the carver of the large shell-cameo present here. We reproduce it here. The design of the fresco has been transferred into the plastic relief in great detail and with routine elegance. The layers of the shell are beautifully separated from each other. The figures shine white against the polished orange-brown background. The gem is quite strongly curved and follows the natural shape of the shell. The setting of the cameo is gold, making it wearable as a brooch. The large cameo has survived the last 70 years or so in all its beauty. As a reminder that a new dawn always follows. "For darkness forever there is no such thing / There is no such thing, there is no such thing."

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Jewelry with cannetille were especially popular in the decade from 1820 to 1830. Cannetille is related to filigree and is usually made of finely hammered sheet metal and gold wires. The shapes used are mainly tendrils, spirals and beehive-like elements that look like delicate lace and are often decorated with fine granules. Typical is also the use of colorful gemstones such as aquamarine, topaz or chrysoberyl, in Central Europe in addition also Bohemian garnets, turquoise and opal. The stones were mostly set in closed settings and provided with a foil background, which unified their color tone. The rise of cannetille coincides with the period of gold scarcity at the beginning of the 19th century, when large jewelry was in fashion but the gold was expensive. Cannetille jewelry looks impressive, but uses little of the precious metal. Cf. with numerous examples Ginny Reddington Dawes / Olivia Collings: Georgian Jewellery 1714-1830, Woodbridge 2007, pp. 113-116 and David Bennet and Daniela Mascetti: Understanding Jewellery, Woodbridge 2010, p. 82, p. 85, etc.

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Size & Details

Because over and over again...

€ 790.00 ^*

Content 1 piece

Incl. VAT, Shipping

Our Promise

We want you to be 100% satisfied! For that reason, we examine, describe and photograph all of our jewellery with the utmost care.

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 trader 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.

Should you for some reason not be satisfied, please don’t hesitate to contact us so that we can begin to find a solution together. In any case, you can return any article within 30 days and we will refund the full purchase price.

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Because over and over again...

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