Featuring three flying doves on a bed of roses and forget-me-not flowers, this rich red brooch was exquisitely crafted in the 1800s. It is set within a sterling silver frame, and some of the birds’ feathers are unusually made of silver tesserae, adding an unusual bit of discreet elegance and sparkle. A remarkable heirloom piece.
C-clasp.
MATERIAL: Silver, Enamel, Glass
AGE: 1800s
CONDITION:
Good – surface wear commensurate with age and use. Some minute tesserae are missing, but this is not visible to the naked eye (see photos).
SIZE:
H 2.5 cm
W 3.25 cm
WEIGHT:
10.01g
SYMBOLISM: For centuries of jewelry-making, doves symbolised peace and love, and roses have symbolised grace, love and sometimes passion, and different colored roses have held distinct meanings. The rose, in all its varieties, was, and still is, recognized widely as a cherished symbol of love and beauty. The forget-me-not flower also held a poignant meaning in antique jewelry. As the name suggests, it symbolized enduring love and remembrance. Often given as tokens of affection, forget-me-nots were seen as a promise to always remember loved ones, even in their absence.
ABOUT MICRO-MOSAICS: Micromosaics are a type of mosaic created from hundreds and even thousands of tiny fragments of glass, called tesserae. The tesserae are mosaic pieces made from an opaque vitreous glass or enamel in a multitude of colors called smalto. The smalto is pulled into rods or threads, called filati (spun enamel), and then left to cool. After cooling, it is cut into hundreds of minute cubes or tesserae and arranged on a copper or gold tray to create a scene, portrait, or landscape. During the mid-nineteenth century, black Belgian marble or “Noir Belge” was carved out and used as the background or base.
The metal or stone supports are then filled with mastic or cement upon which the tesserae are carefully placed and arranged into the desired image. Once the mastic has hardened, the gaps between the tesserae are filled with colored wax and the whole picture is polished to achieve a smooth and even surface.
It is an extremely laborious and painstaking art form. The mosaicist uses tweezers to apply hundreds, sometimes thousands, of tiny tesserae to create incredibly detailed and beautiful scenes. These mosaics could be fairly large panels or plaques inset on table tops or mounted on the wall, but more commonly they were made into much smaller oval or circular plaques that were worn as jewelry, incorporated into pendants, necklaces, earrings, brooches, and rings. During the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, these plaques were often made in Rome, and exported to London or Paris where they were mounted in jewelry.
Please read descriptions and inspect photos carefully, paying careful attention to size and weight. Due to the age of antique and vintage jewelry, minor abrasions and wear of finishes is normal and appreciated. All items have been tested to be in working/usable condition, unless otherwise stated. Please take care to understand safe cleaning methods for each type of gem and metal. Jewelry pieces are carefully wrapped, ribboned and shipped in an elegant velvet box. Antique boxes in photos are for illustrative purposes only.
