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DEVOTIONAL PENDANT. OIL ON AVENTURINE, ENAMEL, GOLD… SPAIN, 17TH CENTU...

Devotional pendant or reliquary. Oil painting on aventurine, enamel, and gold. Spain, 17th century. This medallion, pendant, or reliquary is made of aventurine, with an octagonal shape and faceted edges. It is enhanced with a series of enamels combining black and gold, which protect two oil paintings on Catholic religious themes, one on each side of the piece. The paintings depict a Virgin and Child, quite unique for being inspired by the Madonna del Popolo icon (Rome, Italy), and a simplified Martyrdom of Saint Lawrence (showing the saint, the gridiron, and an angel with a crown and palm branch). The edges of the piece are protected with simple metal elements. The painting of Saint Lawrence follows a composition typical of the Spanish school, and is reminiscent of works such as the altarpiece of the Church of San Lorenzo in Huesca, for example, although it also shares some details with others, such as the engraving by Marcantonio Raimondi (executed around 1527). The so-called icon of the Madonna del Popolo was widely known for being attributed to Saint Luke, and it was brought to the church of the same name by Gregory IX from the Sancta Sanctorum of the Lateran Palace after a flood caused a terrible plague in the city, and through a solemn procession with the image to Santa Maria del Popolo. Regarding the material of the piece, aventurine refers to a specific type of glass and a type of quartz (which can be green or reddish-brown and often contains tiny elements of yellow mica that give it golden reflections). In the first case, "aventurine" or "stellaria" is known to appear in Murano workshops for the first time during the first quarter of the 17th century, in reference to a very complicated paste to produce (it is said that the name comes from this circumstance, that is, that its creation was due to luck or fortune) that imitates the effects of that stone (originating from India and Russia at that time) thanks to the inclusion of copper particles, and which was used as if it were (cut) stone given the complexity of its use in glassblowing (practically impossible). And, dealing with this material, it is necessary to mention “The Nativity” by Pietro da Cortona, dated around 1656, which is kept in the Prado Museum (Madrid) because it is an oil painting on aventurine. Compare this piece with the reliquary medallion with an image of the Virgin painted on aventurine, dated between 1600 and 1633, in the Lázaro Galdiano Museum (Madrid); with another devotional medallion in gold and aventurine in the National Museum of Decorative Arts (Madrid), dated to the 17th-18th centuries; or with the reliquary medallion depicting an Immaculate Conception painted on aventurine, dated between the 18th and 19th centuries, also in the National Museum of Decorative Arts (Madrid); or with the 16th-century Spanish devotional pendant in the Metropolitan Museum of New York depicting Saint John the Baptist and the Virgin (which combines black and white enamels in a manner different from the present piece); or with the 17th-century triangular pendant in black and white enamel and gold from the Valencia de Don Juan Institute in Madrid. Weight: 103 grams.
ANTIQUES
MISCELLANEUS;JEWELRY

Ref.: ZF0700
RELIQUARY PENDANT WITH FLAGELLATION OF CHRIST. SILVER, ENAMEL. 16TH CE...

Reliquary with "Flagellation of Christ". Silver, enamel. 16th century. Oval reliquary pendant decorated on the exterior with a plain band and relief elements on the rim (with curved profiles and engraved simple scrolls), featuring a chain of smooth, oval links (all virtually identical). The front and back display two figurative scenes with striking polychromy. On one side, Christ is depicted in the center of the composition, bound to a tall column and being whipped by two henchmen or soldiers with branches, following a composition common in the 16th century. On the other side, the focal point is a niche in the pendant protected by glass (since it contains a relic, highlighted by a Latin cross), emphasized in the composition with rays of light and a beam of luminosity; this element appears held by an angel and surrounded by winged heads (common in the Renaissance) floating among clouds, and is accompanied by Saint Joseph with the Child and the Flowering Staff, and Saint Anthony of Padua (also with the Child and a bouquet of flowers). These types of jewelry have always been highly valued, both for the materials used in their creation and for their religious significance. Despite this (or perhaps because of it), few examples of high quality and in good condition survive, and they can only be found in important private collections and prominent museums such as the Valencia de Don Juan Foundation in Madrid, the National Museum of Decorative Arts in the same city, etc., or in historic religious centers like the Royal Convent of the Barefoot Nuns in Madrid. Weight: 160 gr
ANTIQUES
MISCELLANEUS;JEWELRY

Ref.: ZF0396
DEVOTIONAL SILVER PENDANT. 17-18TH CENTURIES.

Reliquary cross. Silver, clear glass. 17th-18th century A devotional pendant made of silver in the shape of a Latin cross, decorated on the outside with simple scrolls, points, pearls, and other classically inspired elements, as well as a ring for wearing the piece around the neck. The front has seven oval openings (the one at the intersection of the arms being the largest) protected with clear glass; the back is smooth, with the silver in its natural color. Typologically, there are similar examples of Portuguese origin, made of rock crystal and protected by silver bands, without the scrolls and other decorations, dating from the 16th and 17th centuries, and preserved in private collections. The present jewel displays profiles with much more movement than these two, although the motifs and the simplicity of the lines reflect classical influences. These types of jewels held great value for their owners, both for the materials from which they were made and for their contents, considered sacred and protective. Despite this high value (or perhaps precisely because of it), few examples of good quality and in good condition have survived. Similar medallions to this one are found only in a few important institutions such as the Valencia de Don Juan Foundation in Madrid, the National Museum of Decorative Arts (Madrid), the Lázaro Galdiano Museum (Madrid), the Museum of Beliefs and Popular Religiosity of the Aragonese Pyrenees (Abizanda, Huesca), the Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York), and others. They are also found in prominent religious institutions such as the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela and the Royal Convent of Las Descalzas Reales in Madrid.
ANTIQUES
MISCELLANEUS;JEWELRY

Ref.: ZF0190
RELIQUARY PENDANT. SILVER, ENAMEL. 17TH CENTURY.

Reliquary pendant. Silver, enamel, textile. 17th century. A large, polygonal pendant with a silver frame decorated with small pearls of the same material at the corners of the edge, which has a ring at the top for hanging. One side features a textile background under a sheet of clear glass, likely intended to hold relics. The other side has a brightly colored enamel depicting the Virgin Mary in three-quarter view, holding the naked Christ Child in her arms, both figures silhouetted against a landscape background with classical architectural elements (a fluted column on a pedestal with moldings) and details of a natural landscape (thus linking the scene to the Rest on the Flight into Egypt; compare, for example, with works such as the Virgin and Child by Anton van Dyck in the Cerralbo Museum in Madrid, the oil painting in The Walters Art Museum, or the engraving by Paulus Pontius following models by Van Dyck – where the elements coincide in arrangement with those of the medallion). These types of jewelry have always been highly valued, both for the materials used in their creation and for their religious significance. Despite this (or perhaps because of it), few high-quality examples in good condition have survived, and they can only be found in important private collections and prominent museums such as the Valencia de Don Juan Foundation in Madrid, the National Museum of Decorative Arts in the same city, etc., or in historic religious centers like the Royal Convent of the Barefoot Nuns in Madrid.
ANTIQUES
MISCELLANEUS;JEWELRY

Ref.: ZF0399
RIBBON BROOCH. SILVER, STRASS. CA FIRST THIRD 20TH CENTURY.

Bow brooch. Silver, rhinestones. Circa first third of the 20th century. With partial contrast mark. A silver-plated bow-shaped brooch with a pin on the back and a front composed of white stones and lines of fine red stones that accentuate the piece's shape and lines. It bears a resemblance to brooches by Collingwood and Sons (Birmingham, England). It has a small, partial hallmark on the prong.
ANTIQUES
MISCELLANEUS;JEWELRY

Ref.: Z4997
DEVOTIONAL PENDANT, SAINT JAMES THE GREAT. BRONZE. 17TH CENTURY.

Devotional medal, Saint James the Apostle. Gilt bronze. 17th century. A devotional openwork medal depicting Saint James the Apostle in the center, standing on a pedestal and holding a staff and a book, surrounded by a wreath of leaves tied with two bows above and below. Similar examples can be found in the Museum of Pilgrimages in Santiago de Compostela.
ANTIQUES
MISCELLANEUS;JEWELRY

Ref.: Z5091