Featured CAMEOS: Show & Tell or Ask & Answer

Per our earlier discussion of women taking up the art of cameo-cutting, I found this 1863 absolute gem of a book: The Employments of Women

It's a most interesting read. It mentions Margaret Foley -- I found Ms. Foley a few days ago via newspaper articles and was very excited to have discovered an accomplished and recognized female cameo cutter... then I found out that she already has her own wikipedia page and her work is at the Smithsonian, so she wasn't ever really in need of discovery.

Reportedly, she started whittling at a very young age and learned the "trade" of cameo cutting at Ednah Dow Cheney's School of Design for Women

Here's one of her pieces:

 

There have been several cameos by John King for sale on eBay; think at least 1 is still listed. Wonder whether the Frenchman Mr. L. making portrait cameos in NYC could have been Lebrethon?

The first signed hardstone cameo I ever acquired is the one by Teresa Talani shown in my Introduction thread (& 1 or 2 others). She balanced her work with being the wife of a merchant & mother.

From the one example, Margaret Foley appears to have been extremely talented. Of course barely known now.

 

John King was one I had already found through census records, but haven't gotten round to. The other names were not familiar, but they're now on my to-do list.

It's getting to be a long list!

Who really knows about Mr L? Many of the writers of the day gave little to no thought about the ignorance of their 2019 readers.

 

Wonder whether the very similar necklaces on Mrs. Cleveland & Jenny Lind (whom she has styled like Arethusa) are really more like tags on decanters, & have their names or initials on them.

 

Someone doing research on a gem engraver named Pozzi asked me to rustle up a reference she knew existed, but couldn't get at due to copyright restrictions in EU. All it said was that 'Pozzi' was of course one of the best known engravers of northern Italy.

 

Oh, I bet it's so!

 

Stumbled on these and had to share, because, well look at them.

Reportedly by "Mons Bouvallet" for the Paris Centennial Exposition in 1878. No idea who he is (yet), but look:

 

Are you sure that's not the name of the place? Not sure what I'm meant to be seeing?

 

I am sure about the name: "were carved especially for the Centennial Exposition held in Paris in 1878 and are the work of Mons Bouvallet Paris one of the most famous cameo engravers of his day"

I just think they're fabulous. Are they not fabulous?

 

Mons is the French abbreviation for Monsieur, like Mr for Mister, so the name is likely Mr Bouvallet in Paris.

Forgive me if you already knew this, LOL. I haven't read through the whole discussion on this.

 

No apology needed, I did not make clear that I knew that part!

I've been doing enough cameo research to have become familiar with that particular abbreviation -- in some moments, I'm even starting to believe I can read French.

I cannot.

 

No, I just got back & was about to say the same. It would be more usual to write it as M. Bouvallet; maybe they were trying to avoid confusion with first initials.

 

It was the lack of a period/full stop after Mons + the existence of places (on the moon anyway) that are Mons ____ that created the confusion.

 

@bluumz Love that you changed your avatar.

@Jivvy Afraid country idyll scenes, no matter how complicated, rarely reach me. Sometimes they have buildings that absolutely defy gravity & I'm a bit fond of those. For trees, I'll take this one:

 

To me, there's something spectacular about having that many cows in one cameo.

 

Article with name............. https://books.google.com/books?id=_...B3oECAYQAQ#v=onepage&q=Mons Bouvallet&f=false

 

He may have been one of the most famous gem engravers of his day, but Forrer did not pick him up, even though the cameos appear to be hardstone. Exhibition catalogues seem to have been one of Forrer's primary sources, so a little surprising. He does have a Bouval, medallist, not cameist.

 

Wow, now THATS a cameo!. Beautifully done.

 

Hope you don't mind me asking but do you think this is worth an offer @Bronwen or too damaged?. Is it carved or moulded?

 

Ooh, she's really pretty, Ariadne. Can't really make a decision about what she is & what she might be worth from the one photo. Really need to see her from the side & a view of the back would also be useful. Seen straight from the front the lines look so smooth & round, have to suspect a molded piece, in which case probably not worth buying broken unless very cheap and/or you really love her. If hand carved, then there is more of a decision to make. Post additional pix here or PM me with info that would let me look directly (promise not to grab for myself) & I'll try to say something more decisive.