Pendant with Saint George and the Dragon

Unknown

ca. 1890–1910 · Enameled gold set with diamonds · European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

The central motif of this romantic evocation of a Renaissance jewel was probably inspired by a sixteenth century pendant such as the Saint George in the collection of the Grünes Gewölbe in Dresden. This Renaissance-style motif is attached to an openwork roundel, and it is repeated as though seen from the back on the reverse side of the roundel, but in a flat, linear style that seems to have no parallel in a sixteenth-century jewel. While the technique of enameling is not the same, the effect achieved resembles French plique-à-jour enamels of about 1900; but the jewel is perhaps closest in style to turn-of-the-century graphic art—for example, the book illustrations by Arthur Rackham for Grimm’s fairy tales of the Wagnerian legends.

Artist

Unknown

Date

ca. 1890–1910

Medium

Enameled gold set with diamonds

Culture

possibly French

Department

European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

Credit line

The Jack and Belle Linsky Collection, 1982