Lot 90
90
A pair of framed Italian circular micromosaic plaques
No VAT will be charged on the hammer price, but VA… Read more THE PROPERTY OF A GENTLEMAN 
A pair of framed Italian circular micromosaic plaques

PROBABLY ROME, SECOND HALF 19TH CENTURY

Details
A pair of framed Italian circular micromosaic plaques
Probably Rome, second half 19th century
Each depicting a musketeer and a young woman in peasant attire, drinking by a large cask of wine, in an octagonal stepped ebonised frame
The plaques: 8¼ in. (21 cm.) diameter; the frames: 15 in. (38 cm.) square (2)
Special notice
No VAT will be charged on the hammer price, but VAT at 15% will be added to the buyer's premium which is invoiced on a VAT inclusive basis.

Lot Essay

Romantic and historicising subject matter in the form of cavaliers and ladies was a popular genre in the late nineteenth century. The public were hungry for colourful and romantic historical scenes based on characters inspired by popular literature of the period such as The Three Musketeers and The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas (1802-1870). The French painter Meissonier (1815-1891) was particularly influential in this field, his paintings of cavaliers and historical scenes achieving great popularity outside Europe and inspiring a number of followers. The source for these micromosaics would have been one of the paintings in this genre, which proliferated both in England and on the Continent.

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