Antiques and
Vintage Collectibles Spotlight

Limoges

In addition to the culinary delights that Marco Polo encountered during his explorations of the Far East, Polo discovered Kaolin--the Chinese word for white clay and the primary material for making porcelain.

Vasco De Gama was the first to bring porcelain back to Europe in the 1400s, and trading began under the auspices of the East India Company. The Chinese were desperate to keep the manufacturing process a trade secret to secure their trade position and high prices.

It is believed that King Louis XIV's insatiable appetite for porcelain fueled the French determination to manufacture porcelain in France. The fortunate discovery of Kaolin around Limoges, France towards the end of the 18th century initiated the Limoges porcelain industry. Also unearthed were underground deposits of metals used to provide metallic oxides for coloring enamel and porcelain.

By the early 1800s, Limoges was manufacturing the finest and purest white porcelain in the world. The increase in demand for these masterpieces led to a rapid growth in factories, with nearly three-dozen porcelain factories operating in the Limoges region by 1840.

The latter half of the nineteenth century marked the greatest growth and recognition for Limoges porcelain, recognized worldwide for its quality and fine artistry. Limoges transitioned almost seamlessly from the Art Nouveau period into Art Deco in the 1920s, and many fine works continue to be produced to this day.

Stuart's Musings

Portraits on Ivory

Prior to the advent of photography, portraiture was the means by which a person's likeness was captured and remembered. Miniatures were a popular and affordable way to mark moments in a person's life. In addition to the small framed portraits, painted brooches and pendants were fashioned as a reminder and means of holding a loved one close.

Portraits on ivory demanded precision and advanced artistic technique. Ivory was a difficult material to manipulate and precise techniques for scratching the ivory and applying colors were unique to each artist. An artist's pattern of cross-hatches, stipples, concentric lines, and washes were distinctive. "Like the fingerprints that they resemble, these identifiable patterns form a basis of attribution," writes Kathleen Eagen Johnson in Beloved Keepsakes.

In the eighteenth century, ivory gained acceptance as an ideal medium for miniature portraits. Watercolor and gouache were the preferred paints. To improve paint adhesion the ivory was degreased, bleached, and finely polished. Brushes of varying thickness--broader brushes for background and clothing, finer ones for delicate detailing - were made from sable hair or the tips of a squirrel's tail. A sharp blade, called a scratcher, was used to etch details--such as single strands of hair-- and to make corrections. The magnifying glass was indispensable in the painting of difficult detail and as a means for inspecting the work.

Robin Jaffee Frank, author of American Portrait and Mourning Miniatures, stated that portrait miniatures are unique among works of art for their highly personal associations. "At the height of their American popularity, from 1760 to 1840, these cherished portraits were frequently commissioned as a way to hold on to absent loved ones."