Antique Gold Brooch with Hardstone Cameo of Alexander The Great, c. 1910

This elegant brooch depicts one of the most famous figures of classical antiquity: Alexander the Great. During his short reign from 336 to 323 BC, Alexander conquered many countries and created the largest empire in the ancient world. On his campaigns from Macedonia, he conquered the Persian Empire and even penetrated as far as modern-day India. Alexander was already revered as a god by his contemporaries, admired for his glory in war and his gentleness - and at the same time despised for his hubris, his wars and the destruction of ancient Thebes: He polarized like no other - perhaps because of this - he was portrayed again and again through the millennia and his deeds were described, in all forms of the arts. He could serve as a role model for one's own fantasies of world power; Napoleon, for example, had himself portrayed as Alexander, as did Louis XIV. But in the course of the 19th century (for example in Droysen), a view increasingly prevailed that described him as an idealist who wanted to fulfil a civilizing mission. This cameo shows the god cut from two-colored agate. Alexander can be recognized by his typical hairstyle with his hair swept back, the anastole, and his tainia knotted at the back of his head - an ancient Greek hairband that was associated with royal dignity. His rich, curly hair, which was considered his special attribute, reaches down his neck in curls. This depiction of Alexander is very common in the medium of the cameo, cf. e.g. a late 18th century work in the British Museum in London, , cf. here, an early 19th century cameo in the collection of the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna, see here, or a very beautiful work by Antonio Amastini, also in hardstone, auctioned at Sotheby's, see here. This high-quality cameo was probably cut in Idar-Oberstein in the early years of the 20th century. It is held by a simple gold frame, which is adorned with a circumferential egg-and-dart stick. It is in very good condition.

Estimate:$1,102.05

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