A gold mounted tortoiseshell bonbonnière with a fine polychrome Roman micromosaic. - image-1
A gold mounted tortoiseshell bonbonnière with a fine polychrome Roman micromosaic. - image-2
A gold mounted tortoiseshell bonbonnière with a fine polychrome Roman micromosaic. - image-3
A gold mounted tortoiseshell bonbonnière with a fine polychrome Roman micromosaic. - image-4
A gold mounted tortoiseshell bonbonnière with a fine polychrome Roman micromosaic. - image-1A gold mounted tortoiseshell bonbonnière with a fine polychrome Roman micromosaic. - image-2A gold mounted tortoiseshell bonbonnière with a fine polychrome Roman micromosaic. - image-3A gold mounted tortoiseshell bonbonnière with a fine polychrome Roman micromosaic. - image-4

Lot 19 Dα

A gold mounted tortoiseshell bonbonnière with a fine polychrome Roman micromosaic.

Auction 1207 - overview Cologne
17.11.2022, 10:30 - Jewellery and Watches
Estimate: 3.000 € - 4.000 €
Result: 7.812 € (incl. premium)
Print page
Watchlist

A gold mounted tortoiseshell bonbonnière with a fine polychrome Roman micromosaic.

Gold fineness not tested. Round gold-mounted tortoiseshell box, the lid mounted with a coloured micromosaic (diameter 6.5 cm) depicting Cupid's chariot with a quiver of arrows, a burning torch and a pair of doves in a millefiori border. No hallmarks. One tiny tessarae of the micromosaic lost. The tortoiseshell of the lid warped, a small crack with repairs. H 2.5 cm. Diameter 7.6 cm.
Attributed to the workshop of Giacomo Raffaelli, Rome, ca. 1800.

This high-quality micromosaic is a typical example of the early works of the Vatican workshops. The subtly rendered depiction is inlaid with fine tessere arranged in horizontal lines. Giacomo Raffaelli (Rome 1753 - 1836) was one of the best hard stone and mosaic artists of his time. In 1787 he was appointed by Stanislaus II August, King of Poland, to the Council of Liberal Arts. In 1804 he advanced to the position of director of the Milan mosaic workshop and returned to Rome after being appointed advisor to the Russian Tsar.

Literature

Cf. Grieco, Micromosaici Romani, Rome 2008, p. 128, no. 329 for a paperweight with the same motif.