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Venetian Cameos
(Vitreous paste gem carvings)
Vitreous paste carvings can be traced back as far as the Mesopotamian's, we shall only analyses works carried out by Ancient Romans belonging essentially to the period between 200 BC. and 400 AD., after which we shall search for elements concerning development and trade of his particular gem through to our century.
We can begin from Ancient Aquilegia, a Roman colony founded in 191 BC. in the region of Venetia Gillian, a strategic point of North-Eastern Italy named in honor of Emperor August Julius.
Aquilegia soon acquired commercial and military importance as it was an obligatory transit post if the land itinerary connecting Rome to the Balkans. During Augustus Caesar's domain it became the capital of North-Eastern Region, a strategic military base and center of many trades including ambers and carnelians. The Latin being warlike people and conquerors of Centrally Italy, brought with them slaves, artisans, colonists and merchants. Amongst these settlers were also stone carvers, of which many were most certainly of Greek origin.
More than 3.000 carved gems have been found on the Aquilegia Archaeological Sites. Amongst semiprecious gems the majority are represented by carnelians, used during the period dating from 100 BC. to 200 AD., followed by streaked onyx and agates. Translucent gems like chalcedony, plasma and amethyst were often employed for carvings of minor dimensions with accurate details. Black and withe streaked agate was popular mainly during the 1St. and 2ND century AD..
Opaque stones the red-green, black-yellow, were preferred during the 2ND. and 3rd. century AD. almost all the "Magic" gems were carved from Jaspers.
Aquilegia Vitreous Pastes are numerous and produced in various centuries. There are cases in which several identical copies are obtained from the same matrix and have often been found to be reproductions of precious gems, casting of coins or carved directly on glass.
On vitreous Pastes it is difficult to recognize individual styles or formal patterns which lead to the identification of Art Masters, schools or individual workshops due to the fact in many cases they derived mechanically from other objects. Vitreous pastes were not only a product of a handicraft art but of a real technical-artistic industry where aesthetics and details of subjects and color processing techniques were combined.
In ancient processing of pastes, attempts were made to use various color combinations in the same paste to obtain streaked effects. Many of theme were made to imitate natural gems both in color and transparency. Yellow-brown to imitate carnelians, violet imitating amethyst, greens to imitate chrisopraze; the double layers blue-white to imitate striped agates.
The perfection reached by Aquilegia masters in the processing of Vitreous Pastes may be seen in examples of translucent white and colored bas-relief of portraits, divinities or zodiac signs found on necklace beds pendants.
As mentioned earlier, at the basis of the fortune of a wide diffusion of the Vitreous Pastes lay their low cost and the fact that the Ancient Romans were able to exploit all the chromatic possibilities that vitreous pastes could offer. Colored glass was intentionally used for color research. It is most interesting to note that the most exquisite Vitreous Paste Carvings were not obtained from casts of precious gem intaglios.
Artists used softer materials to obtain maximum details and plastic effects which would never have been possible on harder gems. These original carvings were used only as matrix to obtain Vitreous Paste Gems.
In a matter of a few decades, around 50 AD., gem carvings and Vitreous paste cameos no longer distinguished Bureaucrats but became popular amongst the middle classes.
Processing techniques of antique Vitreous paste were similar to those of other glasses, at least in the initial phase of production. Sodium oxides and silicon, barium or magnesium oxides and other minerals to produce color were melted together and poured into plaster castings previously obtained by pressing original matrix carving against soft plaster. Once glass had cooled, the plaster was eliminated and the stone rimmed. With the castings only the image was obtained. The stone was then molded into shape and size desired, levitated and polished until all signs of the casting had been totally eliminated. The and product resulting in a gem which was identical in shape, and if desired, in color, to its original matrix carving.
Organisation in the workshops had to improve to raise productivity and lower costs. Servile hand labor was abundant. It appears from the rare signed intaglios of the Imperial Age that the servile class included highly qualified and notable artists from Greece.
In the Augustan age there is an abundant production of zoned paste cameos (several colors molded together) particular popular around 25 BC.. These figures of delicate soft plasticity certain masterpieces suggest that either Hellenistic gem matrixes were employed or Artists with incredibly outstanding ability carved them directly.
Glyptic Art seems to loose most of its importance around the 3rd Century AD. not only in Aquilegia but in all the roman Empire. The late Old Age is a time of great political importance and economy flourishes. Gold is no longer used to enhance the beauty of gemstones and their magic. It becomes the predominant element in ornamental objects. Life in the Aquilegia workshops slowly ceases. Many are the causes of this change in fashion, but it is believed that the main reason was due to the sudden difficulty in the trade of raw materials together with increasing tension and difficult relations with populations across the Alps whom had long been the most important source for gem exchange.
Barbarian invasion complete the decline: Visigoth, Ostrogotes and Longobards leave burnt cities behind them and nothing but ash remains of flourishing Aquilegia. The migratory phenomenon which began in 569 following the Longobard invasion caused consistent groups of refugees to make their way towards the Eastern coastline and a great change took place in the North Eastern region. A new settlement called Venetia quickly grew on the numerous islands of the lagoon.
The glass artisans perpetuated their tradition in Venice even throughout the Dark Ages and during the 10nth Century Venetian glass reappears not in the form of Vitreous Paste Carvings but as crockery, faience and mosaic tesserae. Rapid expansion and danger of fire explosion forced artisans to move away from urban areas, so, in 1291 Burano Island was chosen as location for the glass industry. Space was abundant and many large new furnaces were built enabling a grater production.
A much clearer picture of Venetian glass production is once more visible in the 15nth Century with its gilded and enameled glass in blue, green purple and crystal.
Inspired by classical Rome, Venetian glass makers created mosaic object, millefiori, aventurine and calcedonium imitating natural stone. Production of Vitreous Paste Gems in this period is rare. Prevailing taste is for knickknacks, elaborate glass crockery and goblets often adorned with Vitreous Paste carvings, portraits and Coat of Arms. Carvings are carried out with diamond points or with enamel techniques.
As taste and fashion evolves the use of gold jewelry prevails as emblem of power and beauty. Not only the know-how in the production of Vitreous paste carved gems but also the knowledge of their use and significance were for several centuries forgotten.
A sudden return to their appreciation took place during the "Art Deco" period when Artists like Cartier and another extravagant jewelers on the look out for novelties considered these objects as superb material for many of their rich creations.
Diamond studded pendants with Vitreous Paste centre gem imitating a ruby; or the brooch with clown heads where natural stone elements are superbly alternated with Vitreous Pastes with impossible colors. These associations of colors and diversified materials displayed a high standard of expressive abilities of the Goldsmith Artists.
As mentioned before, knowledge of the existence and meaning of Vitreous paste carved gems were forgotten together with technological and cultural patrimony.
Since 1981 together with several friends, we have gathered all our efforts in trying to reconstruct and recuperate this Italian Artistic patrimony by researching in various directions.
We have since searched for and obtained authentic 18nth Century plaster matrix castings and after numerous attempts have rediscovered and successfully experimented original roman blending, processing and casting methods thanks to the perseverance of two able Venetian artisans and our common passion for Aquilegia archaeology.
References: Gems of Aquilegia national Museum.
