Post Classical Shell Cameo of a Lady

Carved in two-coloured red and brown agate, depicting a classical muse in right-facing profile with flowing hair, and drapery, the laurel wreath identifying her as an embodiment of poetic or artistic inspiration; the cameo set in a 19th-century mount with a border of single-cut diamonds set in platinum, a pierced, open-backed construction and bifurcated shoulders enriched with classical leaf motifs. 6.47 grams, 25.88 mm overall, 16.12 mm internal diameter (approximate size British J 1/2, USA 5, Europe 9.32, Japan 9)



Acquired on the European art market. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.13327-257906.

The union of an eighteenth-century Italian gem engraving with a later English mount reflects a broader nineteenth-century practice of integrating earlier engraved gems into newly conceived settings.

Discoid mirror set in a silver frame and a polished shell case, secured with a silver flower-and-scroll mount and a small hook. 56.2 grams, 86 mm



Private collection, Europe. Acquired on the English art market.

Matched pair, each with a long spatulate tail, folded wings and hunched neck; ferrous remains at the attachment point. 108 grams total, 64 mm each



Found Cambridgeshire, UK.