Antique Cameos
A selection of Ancient Greek, Roman, Renaissance and Victorian Cameos.
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- Red Jasper Cameo by Pistrucci
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- Greek cameo with portrait of Alexander the Great
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- The Gemma Claudia Antique Roman Cameo
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- The Gemma Augustea Roman Cameo
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- Roman cameo carving of an Eagle
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- Superb cameo by Massanago
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- The Gonzaga Cameo – Greek, Hellenistic period
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- Lapis lazuli cameo from 16th Century
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- Roman Cameo with Laurel wreath
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- Cameo of Emperor Charles V and King Phillip II of Spain
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- Cameo portrait of Queen Isabella
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- The very large Roman Grand Cameo of France
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- Antique Roman Cameo of Messalina
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- Cameo of Phaeton driving a chariot
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- Cameo of Beneddeto Pistrucci
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- Cameo of Florence Nightingale by Saulini
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- Bloodstone Antique Cameo of Jesus Christ
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- Antique Wedgewood Cameo in porcelain
Cameos are often worn as jewelry. Stone cameos of great artistry were made in Greece dating back as far as the 6th century BC. They were very popular in Ancient Rome, and one of the most famous stone cameos from this period is the Gemma Claudia made for the Emperor Claudius.
Ancient methods of hardstone engraving were based on principles still in play today. The pieces were worked by manipulating various drills (in antiquity made of relatively soft metal, eventually replaced by iron) against them. The actual cutting was accomplished not with the point of the drill itself but by using the drill to rub powders into the stone.
At all times the stones must have been gripped fixedly to prevent their shattering. When magnifying glasses were introduced into the art is unclear; today they would be virtually indispensable. In the nineteenth century, new methods, including the intervention of photography, allowed greater accuracy.
The technique has since enjoyed periodic revivals, notably in the early Renaissance, and again in the 18th and 19th centuries. The Neoclassical revival began in France with Napoleon’s support of the glyptic arts, and even his coronation crown was decorated with cameos.
