Featured CAMEOS: Show & Tell or Ask & Answer

tq for the explanation!

 

This is just me venting &, I suppose, sending out a warning, about professional jewellers when it comes to cameos. I so often see this sort of thing.
UNIQUE..14 K Gold hand-carved Cameo Ring Agate Antique unique
This description and the title were obtained from a jeweler....


I can't second guess about the quality of the gold, but when a jeweller asserts that a helmet shell cameo is agate, it always makes me wonder whether anything else they say is correct. The setting covers the deep concavity of the back that would have been (or should have been) the final tippoff, but someone who actually knew what they were talking about would have known better from what's visible. It has been my experience that jewellers are always sure, but not always right, particularly about cameos.

This one was cut using the horn of the shell to make it stand out so far. There seems to have been a fad at some point for these forward facing ladies with prominent features.

Seller is setting themselves up for a complaint of 'not as described'. I would consider warning them, except know it is probably futile since they have had the opinion of a professional & who the heck am I?

 

I've shown this before, and now I'm showing it again! It's not the worst carved, and it certainly puts shell cameo into context... a lamp.

 

Although she is of the generic pretty lady type from well into the 20th century, she really is very well cut & artisan has made very good use of the color layers, giving some blush to her cheek & tint to her hair. Some of the older ones sit on metal tripods with Sirens' heads at the top. Love that you have her in working order. Doesn't it make a lovely glow?

Tried to rejigger a little glass lamp base I have to accommodate a shell lampshade but set the project aside when I realized I was going to have to redo the wiring completely & put in an in line switch to get rid of the knob preventing the shell from sitting down. Missing that metal collar around the opening where the spire has been sawn off, so hope it won't wobble too much. Should pull it out & try to finish it off. Not that I have a spare outlet where I could plug it in.

Do you light yours regularly? Very pretty indeed.

 

Sold on eBay. I thought it made a decent dollar.

 

Found this one tonight, thought you would be interested.

 

I wonder how anyone could put something up for sale with that dirt in the carving! It's like someone modeling jewelry with filthy hands and chipped nails

 

Phaik, suspect your piece originally looked like this one.

 

I see this pretty often. Explanations range from laziness to fear of cleaning, with the common middle ground of 'I know some people prefer pieces in original condition, so I will leave cleaning to buyer.' In debating the clean/don't clean matter with other collectors, I always point out that no museum shows filthy cameos.

Grunge is actually useful for photos, it brings out the lines of the carving. A completely clean white figure on a dark ground can be really difficult to capture well. It can also distort the features. More than once have done well in an auction & believed it was because I thought a mean looking mouth or a weird looking nose that was putting off other bidders was just a dirt-created illusion. One case that turned out very well for me was a little green cameo of Diana that really looked like glass in the photos. Bought it without being sure, but thought I had seen the faintest hint of layers in 1 pic, so took the chance.

Seller's photo:



After a bath:



My advice on this topic is to clean before putting up for sale, although for photo purposes, may want to leave some of the crevices a little darkened. But for heaven's sake, do remove the globs that tend to accumulate in nostrils, eye sockets & mouth corners. Potential buyers will not know if you do not tell them. Buyers of inexpensive cameos do not care & buyers of higher end ones are knowledgeable enough to gauge age without grunge.

 

@Figtree3 They are all cameos, all worth knowing about, all worth having if they please you & all welcome here. If you have some that are particularly realistic looking fakes, please show us when you get the time. We could play a game: which is the 'real' one & which the fake?



No cheating by looking at file names!

 

Here's one that I own, thought I'd add it to the mix. I know nothing about cameos and this one is no exception, other than it probably needs a good cleaning. Stored in an old jewelry box with other old jewelry that probably gets it dirty. Been in the family a long time. Just not too sure how long. Anyway to date it? Don't think it's gold. Can't find any marks. All comments appreciated.

 

I think of these generically as country scenes, or woman in a country scene, as quite a number of them include a lone woman, occasionally 2 women talking, in a lane or on a bridge.

For me, even though the carving is never what you would call museum quality, they have an interesting quality of their own: I have never seen any 2 exactly alike; unlike the majority of helmet shell cameos, they are not copies of an art work in another medium but seem to be each carver's own composition. There is sort of a menu of elements that are mixed & matched: a rather stylized tree; a stream, with or without a little bridge over it; a woman or women in 18th century dress; a building or buildings, sometimes looking ruined or improbably balanced; the woman is sometimes feeding a goat or some kind of waterfowl. There are similar ones, not as common, that feature children playing. Some have a well or well house & you will see them identified as Rebecca at the Well, which they are not. You might say they are Italian country idylls, 19th century artisans' fantasy representations of an earlier time. See in yours what could be the indication of a church steeple on the left; some do include a church.

Absence of marks on a piece this age does not rule out precious metal, but just going by photos & what is usual for these cameos, agree that setting is gold-look only. Maybe silver that once had gold wash? Both setting & cameo appear to be in very good condition. Suspect it is not quite so old as the tube hinge would suggest, but still an antique. Of course, it's greatest value is that it has been handed down in your family.

Dirt on shell cameos can usually be safely remedied. However, if it is living loose among other pieces, it needs some protection from scratching & bashing, which cannot be undone.

Do you ever wear her?

 

Afterthought: I would give her a good soaking in plain water, just to rehydrate the shell & give it a bit more resilience. It will not harm either the cameo or the setting. Just make sure it is thoroughly dry before returning to box.

 

Thank you for that. I will put it into something to protect it. No, Cameos really aren't my thing. Plus I'm a guy so...My wife likes it but never wears it either.

 

Even a little plastic bag with a press seal top, if you happen to have one around, will protect from scratching & buffer any bumps.

I hate to see family pieces leave the family if there's any other choice. Apart from starting a new look in men's fashion, is there another family member who might enjoy it, even as a memento of an earlier generation?

Think Madeleine Albright may be the only woman who regularly wears brooches nowadays. I confess, I much more often wear cameo pendants or earrings than pins. Always running out the door with no time to spend positioning a brooch. Also, a less secure way to wear a cameo. I do keep a little Diana pinned on a velvet winter hat.

 

tq! .... mine probably 2 decimals to the left

 

No worries. That piece isn't leaving the family. My daughters will end up with most everything, whether they want it or not.

 

That's what I was hoping to hear.

 

Sorry that I've been remiss in not posting anything lately. I'd probably need to do that on the weekend, as taking photos in the evening wouldn't work. I don't have good lighting in my house, and usually try to take them when there is at least a little natural light available. Anyway, I appreciate the reminder. I just thought about this a couple of days ago.

 

The first one looks like ivory... but I can't tell about the second one. Maybe glass?