18 juillet 2012

Necklace and earrings (part of a parure). Late 16th cent. with 17th and 19th cent. additions. English. Chain: enamelled gold, pearls, rubies, emeralds; earrings: enamelled gold, pearls, rubies. Chain: L 9.5 cm; earrings: H 3.4 cm. Presented to Queen Mary by Lilias Countess Bathurst. RCIN 65620 .a .c &.d. The Royal Collection © 2012, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. The necklace and earrings are part of a parure together with a brooch. The necklace consists of a principal gold element with... [Lire la suite]

Lidded jar. Jin dynasty, 1200-1300. Yaozhou kilns, north China. Stoneware with pale green (celadon) glaze. Museum no.C.42-1935. From the Eumorfopoulos collection, purchased with the assistance of The Art Fund, the Vallentin Bequest, Sir Percival David and the Universities China Committee [2007]. Victoria & Albert Museum, London © V&A Images Bibliographic References: Kerr, Rose. Song Dynasty Ceramics. London: V&A Publications, 2004. p. 58, no. 55

Minerva, c.1600-1699. Italian. Banded agate: grey and white; open silver-gilt mount with suspension loop; 2.8 x 2.4 cm. First recorded in the Royal Collection in 1872. RCIN 65225. The Royal Collection © 2012, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. Cameo with a bust of Minerva, the Roman warrior goddess, wearing a helmet, in profile to the left, with drapery along the neckline. The representation is based on ancient coins but the unrefined manner in which the stone is cut suggests a seventeenth... [Lire la suite]

Dish with moulded characters 'tai xi'. Yuan dynasty, 1330-1340, shufu ware. Jingdezhen kilns, south China. Bluish (qingbai) glaze porcelain with moulded decoration under a white glaze. Diameter: 17.8 cm. Museum no. C.49-1965. J.G. Maxwell Brownjohn bequest [2007]. Victoria & Albert Museum, London © V&A Images 'Tai xi' refers to the Office of Imperial Ancestor Worship. This bowl would have been used in ancestral worship ceremonies performed by Mongol emperors.

Locket with hair of Charles I., c.1620. English. Gold, enamel, Burmese rubies, early and triangular-cut diamonds; 7.5 x 5.0 cm. Queen Victoria. RCIN 43778. The Royal Collection © 2012, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. Oval gold locket with large scrollwork suspension loop in opaque blue and white enamel, white enamel loop at bottom. Obverse: openwork pea-pod design in opaque white and translucent dark-blue and green enamel, set with twelve rubies and ten diamonds. Reverse: pierced... [Lire la suite]

Pouring bowl with wild goose design. Yuan dynasty, 1320-1350. Jingdezhen kilns, south China. Porcelain with white decoration on blue ground. Height: 4.5 cm, Length: 16.8 cm. Museum no. C.27-1953. From the A. Clarke collection [2007]. Victoria & Albert Museum, London © V&A Images Exhibition: International Exhibition of Chinese Art (Royal Academy of Arts 01/01/1935-31/12/1936)

Pendant with thirteen cameos. Early 17th cent. French. Gold, émail en ronde bosse, émail champlevé, sardonyx, turquoise, black and white onyx, sard, brown and grey agate, black and grey agate, niccolo: 3.0 x 8.9 cm. RCIN 65256. Documented in the Royal Collection before 1755. The Royal Collection © 2012, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. Gold openwork pendant with opaque white and middle-blue enamel foliate scrolls and two dragons on cornucopiae in opaque mauve, translucent green and opaque... [Lire la suite]

Incense burner. Yuan dynasty (1271-1368). Jun kilns, north China. Stoneware with blue glaze and purple splashes. Height: 9.5 cm, Diameter: 9.2 cm. Bought from S.M. Franck & Co. Museum no. C.118-1910 [2007]. Victoria & Albert Museum, London © V&A Images

Emerald cross. 1575 to 1799. Acquired by Queen Mary before 1920. Emeralds, enamel, gold, pearls, 7.2 x 3.6 cm. RCIN 9051.  The Royal Collection © 2012, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. Obverse: cross formed of seven emeralds in varying shaped table-cuts and box settings. Along the side panels is a frieze in black enamel with a stylised leaf pattern. The cross is inserted into a white enamel frame with opaque blue, translucent green scrollwork and strapwork and a translucent red enamel rosette.... [Lire la suite]

Dish with fish design. Yuan dynasty (1271-1368). Longquan kilns, south China. Stoneware with pale green (celadon) glaze. Museum no. C.32-1946. F.E. Colthurst bequest [2007]. Victoria & Albert Museum, London © V&A Images