Gareth’s Pocahontas Cameo is an exquisite tribute to the 16th Century original that was presented to Pocahontas by King James I and Queen Anne…Diana Jarrett
My Cameo of Pocahontas for Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth
Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II is presented with a Custom made Cameo Brooch Pin by Chief Bill Miles a descendant of the Indian princess. Almost 500 years ago, Queen Anne of England gave a cameo to Pocahontas that was carved with her likeness. Gareth was asked to create this special reproduction of the 16th Century Pocahontas Cameo to honor the Queen’s visit to Jamestown, Virginia. Her Majesty loved the Cameo was delighted by the story of how the original cameo came to be in America.
Now in the Queen’s Private Collection
Her Majesty took the Cameo of Pocahontas back to the UK. It is now part of the Queen’s private collection at Buckingham Palace.
I heard that the Queen loved her Cameo and spent many hours admiring the carving. Her Majesty was entranced by the story of how a previous King James had given the Cameo to Pocahontas.
Her husband John Rolfe sailed with it to America. The Cameo pin was stolen in the Civil war. The cameo was levered out of it’s setting with a Bowie knife. You can see the chipped edges of the original cameo.
Many years later the Cameo was found and set in a new brooch. The new owners, the Weisiger family donated the cameo pin to the Jamestown Settlement Museum in Virginia in the 1950’s.
In 2007 I examined the cameo with the help of the curators at the museum. We made a plaster cast which became the model for my carving of the new Pocahontas Cameo that was presented to the Queen.
Royal protocol dictates that I am not allowed to repeat Queen Elizabeth’s exact words. However, I can say that Her Majesty was entranced by my Cameo Jewel. She was intrigued by the story of how the original cameo was given to Pocahontas by Queen Anne and King James I over 450 years ago. My Cameo of Pocahontas returned with the Queen to England. The cameo is now part of the Royal Collection at Buckingham Palace, London.
The original Cameo Brooch owned by Pocahontas
I selected a natural layered agate as the closest match to the original cameo brooch. I set the hand carved portrait cameo in a Platinum Brooch, accented with fresh- water pearls fished from the Tennessee river.
The original 16th Century Cameo of Pocahontas had been carved in a Classical manner. Her portrait was changed to look less Indian.
With my reproduction I was faithful to the true portrait of Pocahontas. Making the image more authentic was really appreciated by descendants of Pocahontas.
Gareth has been carving cameos with such precision and grace that they have attracted the attention of several discerning collectors including Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II...Diana Jarrett, Author of ‘Cameos Old and New’.
