18K Victorian Cherubs En-Grisalle Enamel Rope Necklace

A pristine example of mid to late c.1870 Victorian Limoges Enamel brooch to necklace conversion of a cherubs scene rendered in 18k solid gold with rope detailing.

It is an absolute masterpiece & treasure with detailed techniques. You can see a lot of careful thought was put into the creation of this wonderful piece. There is no damage to the enamel work at all and it is in mint condition. The necklace is a 15k gold antique rope chain with a push in barrel clasp dated to c.1880-1890.

It measures 41mm x 19mm, and including the cherubs piece, it is a wearable length of 17".

French Limoges Enamel / Grisaille Enamel Technique
More about the Limoges French enamelling technique; A very thick white paste is prepared from enamel and vegetable oils, and the tricky part is creating an artwork so neat from the paste, as the paste does not follow the brush like strokes in a painting. The paste has to be “stretched” with a needle, hereby creating the minute details and shadowing of the face, hands, body etc and modelling an artistic scene.

This needlework and “paste-stretching” is what gives fineness and shades to the enamels. Not only that, the enamel has to be fired several times in order to create the desired effect, creating multiple layers of pronounced shadows.

Era - Victorian c.1870 (Cherubs) / Victorian c.1880-1890 (Chain)
Materials - 18k gold / Enamel
Measurements - 41mm x 19mm height
Length - 17" total length including piece