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Small micromosaic brooch with the doves of Pliny.
Tested yellow gold 585. 22.22 x 18.27 mm. 2,9 g.
Small micromosaic brooch, the mosaic inlaid in mother-of-pearl in archaeological style. The motif replicates a historical mosaic from Hadrian's Villa (2nd century BC), on display in the Capitoline Museums in Rome. Since its archaeological recovery in 1737, this motif has been associated with the description of a mosaic by the ancient mosaicist Sosos from Pergamon in Pliny's Naturalis historia, which is why the motif of the four doves sitting on the edge of a water vessel is often referred to as "the doves of Pliny". Pliny's doves, made accessible to an interested public in museums early on, were a popular souvenir motif for travelers to Rome in the 18th and especially the 19th century and were replicated many times, especially in the medium of micromosaics. The American traveler to Rome William Mitchell Gillespie reports in his travelogue "Rome: As Seen by a New Yorker in 1843-44" that "the Mosaic of Pliny's doves, copied in miniature on half the breast-pins that you see" were depicted. The micromosaic replicas were often closer to the description in Pliny's Naturalis historia than to the mosaic from Hadrian's Villa. The reflection of the dove in the water described by Pliny, for example, is not depicted on the mosaic from Hadrian's Villa, but is often included in the small-format replicas, including the present brooch. The brooch shows the popular motif in a small format. An architectural representation with 4 towers is carved into the mother-of-pearl on the reverse. The clasp is a simple hook clasp typical of the period. Minor loss to the setting around the edge; mosaic holds securely, pin slightly bent.
Literature : Cf. DiSalvo, Lauren K., Translating Antiquity onto Souvenirs: The Collectively Shaped Reception of the Doves of Pliny on Micromosaics, in: Art Inquiries no. 18 vol. 4 2023, pp. 269-283. Gillespie, William Mitchell, Rome: As Seen by a New Yorker 1843-44, New York 1845, p. 42.
Aufrufzeit 22 | Oct. 2025 | voraussichtlich 10:01 Uhr (CET)
Limit 190 €
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