Featured CAMEOS: Show & Tell or Ask & Answer

Isn't it amazing the difference shmoo removal can make? You didn't give us a 'before' pic of the front of the intact brooch. Do you have one? I like to keep a record of cameos I encounter that have a date connected with them. In this case the unusual setting is also interesting. You will show us the finished result, yes?

 

Sure, here you go! She still looks so filthy in that photo . You can see the messed up catch too. I really love her design though the hair and everything. Based on the fact that there is only a tiara, I am thinking she might be Hera? And yes, I will post a picture when it is finished! Gonna have to wait for my solder to come in the mail though.

 

Thank you, ma'am. She has been duly archived.

Yes, that is the conventional interpretation. May or may not be what the cutter had in mind.

 

Dragons on the head seem quite common, but why the turtle?
(A photo from a local auction house, no I didn't buy.)

 

Quirky -- I like that!

 

As someone with 2 turtles in the bathtub, I would love to have that one. I can only think that the cutter re-envisioned the usual dragon/sea monster into a tortoise. The face is quite effeminate. That little ruffle at the neck may have fooled him. Think this Achilles by an engraver named Grew is the primary source:



The one figure who does appear with a tortoise is the playwright Aeschylus, who was said to have been killed by one.

 

I have a cat in a similar position on the back of my couch. She'd try it on my head if she wanted Treats badly enough... and I didn't mind a bloody scalp, but a turtle on the helmet is probably safer.

 

Think the thunking would drive you mad after a bit.

 

A little bit late for "drive". Her name is Genie, aka Thumper; she lands with a "thump". Not too good a thunking.

 

Do you know who this person is please @Bronwen?
It’s for sale for £50 about 40 miles drive, she won’t post, it’s a bit far for me but I’d be interested to know if I’m missing a bargain.

 

For 50 squids I'd already have the car started, but I love lavas. That's a legit Victorian lava cameo. I had to think for a second, but that's Dante.

 

Dante Alighieri, in lava.

 

I was typing even as evelyb30 was posting. Not sure you guys need me anymore, you've been doing very well among you.

Sometimes lava cameos have the name of the subject engraved on the back. And sometimes sellers represent this as a signature. This is much less common on cameos in other media, although I do have several hardstone pieces with the names.

 

I've seen a few lavas; I love the carving, but have never been a huge fan of the colors. That said I'd still be on the road after this one; that setting may well be gold, and even if not that cameo is still well worth 50 pounds.

 

Thanks Ladies, I have messaged her and said I’ll be over this afternoon and will contact her before I set off. I’ll let you know later if I’m successful.

 

Got it, along with another mop brooch which I’ve posted on the jewellery forum.
I spoke to her daughter who said they were her great grandmothers but no other info.
There’s a tiny bit of damage on the carving, looks as if someone has tried to test the gold, and they may have got the wrong result because of it being rose gold. I’ll do a test myself tomorrow, less invasive than the splodge already done.

 

For a lava that's nothing! I have two here somewhere. One is worn down to a nub and the other is cracked.

 

Lava is soft, porous, easy to carve, prone to damage. Think it may sometimes crack spontaneously due to dryness. This mottled Saturn definitely gets tighter in its frame after a good soak:



Surprised Dante didn't lose the tip of that distinctive nose; that's probably the most common chipping you see on cameos. When examining a hardstone cameo, check the nose first.

 

It looks in pretty good condition overall, Bronwen is there anything you would advise to keep it from drying out? Olive or baby Oil or a water soaking once in a while?

 

I like the mount; simple but unusual. Does the metal have that same rosy tint as it does in the first 2 pix? Low karat rose gold a possibility. One always has to consider pinchbeck when evaluating jewellery from this era.

Eek! No, no, no. Keep it away from oil, even too much handling. Oil will stain it.

He looks surprisingly clean, which is fortunate because lava is difficult to clean, so no soap. I would give him a welcoming soak for at least a few hours. He will darken, but return to right color once thoroughly dry. Don't pack up in any way until he has had several days of air drying.