Elegant Brooch with Enamel Painting, Diamonds & Pearls, c. 1880

A winged little putto sits on a budding cherry blossom branch playing the flute. The sky is bright blue. The small scene is captured in painter's enamel, painted by hand over a base of translucent turquoise blue enamel on iridescent guilloché gold. This gives the painting a wonderful depth effect, especially when in motion. The enamel painting is set in a coat of arms-shaped shield formed by garlands of diamond roses and natural pearls. Typical of the period, they are set in silver, which is backed with reddish gold. Small fleurs-de-lys fill the spaces between the tondo and its precious setting. We believe that the brooch was created around 1880. Brooches in the shape of shields were very fashionable at the time and it was the height of enthusiasm for the past, so the cheerful echo of the Rococo period that pervades the painting was also very much in keeping with taste. We were able to discover this beautiful little gem in the Netherlands. The inlaid plaque with the putto may have been created in France, where Limoges had a great tradition of enamel work since the Middle Ages.

Estimate:£1,265.65

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