Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Mastery of Design: The Castellani Ruby Pendant, c. 1860

Pendant by Castellani
1860-1900
Rome, Italy
The Victoria & Albert Museum



The famed Castellani family of jewelers drew much of their inspiration from the jewels which were made during the Renaissance of their native Italy.  This jeweled pendant is an excellent example of their Renaissance revival work.  The pendant which also features a brooch mounting is a work of enameled gold set with table-cut rubies and emeralds, and hung with pearls.

The piece was made in Rome between 1860 and 1900.




2 comments:

Darcy said...

The amount of detail that went into jewelry pieces of the late 1800's is just amazing. The back of the piece is just as detailed as the front and even without the rubies and emerald is still very pretty.

Joseph Crisalli said...

The back would be prettier if he V&A hadn't written on it.