Brisbane Miniature Masterpieces — Decorative Arts Auction Mon 8 Aug, 12pm MELBOURNE RIGHT: AN ITALIAN MICROMOSAIC
PAPERWEIGHT DEPICTING THE PANTHEON, ROME Mid-19th century $3,000 – 5,000
Micromosaic is a special form of mosaic that is created
speaking community in Rome were also avid collectors, with
through a laborious process performed by talented craftsmen
the firm catering to Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Henry James
using many tiny pieces (tesserae) of opaque vitreous glass in
and other celebrated expatriate clients. The passion for
a multitude of colours to make small images. The inspiration
micromosaic jewellery was not just limited to Italy - pieces
for the practice can be traced back to the renewed interest
were exported to England, Germany, Russia, and France, and
in large-scale Early Christian and Byzantine mosaics, which
inspired versions were created by the great, London-based
had started to attract amateur archaeologists and antiquarian
jewellers Carlo Giuliano and Robert Phillips.
scholars in the late eighteenth century. Micromosaic jewellery reached the height of popularity in the 1840s-1870s when small, vivid images of religious subjects, ancient Roman ruins, animals, and flowers were inset into imposing gold-mounted necklaces, bracelets, and brooches.
Today, opulent and striking examples of micromosaic jewellery are much prized and sought-after by collectors, especially in the form of demi-parure matched sets. I am please to have discovered in Brisbane a locally sourced
Among the great practitioners of the art were the Italian Castellani family (Fortunato Castellani and his sons Alessandro and Augusto), whose opulent and expensive jewels were prized as souvenirs by wealthy ‘grand tourists’. The English-
micromasaic plaque being offered in our Decorative Arts sale in August. TROY MCKENZIE / Queensland Representative Specialist
— AUCTIONS —
Valuations Leonard Joel is the only auction house in Australia with a dedicated Valuations department, enabling us to offer a broad range of specialist expertise for the valuation and auction of single items and entire collections. — Contact our Head of Valuations, David Parsons at 03 8825 5638 or email david.parsons@leonardjoel.com.au leonardjoel.com.au | 29
