Featured Finds from a house call to die for

Putting in my 2 cents on the cameos. The hardstone cameo in the archeological revival setting is quite a find! Think it is probably not, but you might want to check whether it is a Castellani piece. Certainly style of.

From the one photo, the cameo in the ring right below looks like conch shell to me. Perhaps if I could see more of it I would change my mind.

You are quite right that many of the cameos of a figure in the clouds holding a painter's palette are Raphael. However, the bare-armed figure on this conch shell cameo is clearly meant to be female. She is more of an allegorical figure: painters' inspiration or the personification of painting itself.

The helmet shell cameo looks surprisingly eroded; common with rings, not so much with brooches. She is a bit scrambled: grape vine in the hair, flowers around the bottom. Going by the mix 'n' match imagery & the prong setting, she is probably later than the others .

 

i too love the calling card cases, but FIRST, I now must get a new keyboard.....too much drool...............

 

That is amazing!! Really beautiful stuff. May Ask what your handle is on Ebay. I would like to follow your store. Thanks

 

Hello Plaid, Are you talking to me? I only occasionally sell on eBay, not always cameos. I have nothing up now but really need to buckle down & get more things out there. I'm a collector/scholar, not a dealer. When I do sell, it is as ct_scuppernongs

 

Have u posted on the introduction forum yet, to tell us who you are so that we all could welcome you here ?
& if not...why not ???

 

Nope, because I am clueless & some search landed me in the midst of the fray without saying howdydo. There is a little about me on my profile page.

 

Stunning, beautiful pieces.

 

Nice meeting you, but I was asking Marie Forjan, the person with the original post.

 

Having been duly reproved, I have started an introductory thread. Thank you for pointing out to me this needed doing.

 

Always watch the emos for actual intent.

 

Hi, I do not have an eBay store, I just sell there occasionally. But none of these nice pieces will be sold there. I will be taking them to antique shows. But, if you want to look for me on eBay, I sell under mforjan I probably won't sell much there until after the first of the year.

 

I took it as a friendly, humorous nudge. Being too old, & scheduled for cataract surgery, what in my day we called emoticons are too numerous now, & too tiny for me to interpret or use myself. My formal reply was also supposed to be humorous. Is there an emo for 'you're supposed to laugh at this'? If there is, know someone in the White House who also needs it.

 

Thank you for all the information, I really appreciate it!

I will look into Castellani for the hard stone cameo in the archeological revival setting

For the ring, it tests as stone on my gem tester. Right now it is in a locked jewelry case in my storage area. I can pull it out for more photos if you want. If I remember correctly the back is level, not concave like shell cameos I have seen.

Thanks for you information on the cameo with the painter

 

I would be interested in seeing it if you want my further opinion, but can tell you that small conch pieces, such as the size for a ring, are usually flat on the back. Even quite large ones can be nearly so, or just a little undulating. This is one of the reasons conch is so often confused with 'angel skin' coral. (The other is wishful thinking.)
Take a look at this liberally illustrated article on distinguishing between the two. It may help you come to a conclusion on your own, even though you are trying to work out whether conch or stone:
http://cameotimes.com/index.php/reference/materials-guide?showall=&start=1
This conch shell cameo is 5.5 cm tall (you can just see the palm of my hand behind it). Apart from a shallow dip at about 11 o'clock, the back is flat:



If, after examining it again, you decide you would like me to take another look at it, would need to see it in better light & particularly need to see some of the edges where the figure meets the ground. Right now I am going mainly on color.

 

OK, I will pull the ring out and take better photos. Thank you

 

Watch this space...

 

Then that will do nicely !
Welcome aboard.....& I hope the procedure goes swimmingly !!!

 

Thanks - I hope so too. Can't wait. When you spend as much time as I do looking at tiny details on things that are not very big to begin with, it's really nice to be able to see.