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Photo, Print, Drawing Cameo with a Portrait Bust of Charlemagne. Carolvs Magnus

About this Item

Title

  • Cameo with a Portrait Bust of Charlemagne.

Other Title

  • Carolvs Magnus

Summary

  • This small cameo is engraved with a portrait bust of Charlemagne, from his right side, with the inscription "Carolus Magnus" (Charles the Great). The long-haired emperor, with his imposing beard, is wearing a crown with a fleur-de-lis and Renaissance-inspired armor with arabesque motifs. This cameo is part of a collection of 63 portraits of the kings of France, from legendary King Pharamond to Louis XIII. The cameo is from one of two series of portraits of kings of France on shell that were made in the 17th century, one under the reign of Henry IV and the other under the reign of Louis XIII. They are now preserved in the Museum of Coins, Medals, and Antiques at the National Library of France. Both are highly valued, more for their pedagogical value than for their actual beauty. The portraits are engraved in relief (embossed design) on soft shell, which appears white in the thicker areas and translucent where it is thinner. They are covered with a black tar-like paste, which imparts blue hues to the background of the cameo, making it look like onyx. While the portraits of the later kings copy contemporary medals, the portraits of their ancestors, both mythical and real, are mostly inspired by engravings.

Created / Published

  • [place of publication not identified] : [publisher not identified], [1600 to 1699]

Headings

  • -  France
  • -  1600 to 1699
  • -  Cameos
  • -  Charlemagne, Emperor, 742-814
  • -  Jewelry
  • -  Kings and rulers
  • -  Portraits

Notes

  • -  Title devised, in English, by Library staff.
  • -  Original resource extent: 1 cameo : shell ; 24 x 19 millimeters.
  • -  Original resource at: National Library of France.
  • -  Content in Latin.
  • -  Description based on data extracted from World Digital Library, which may be extracted from partner institutions.

Medium

  • 1 online resource.

Digital Id

Library of Congress Control Number

  • 2021670759

Online Format

  • compressed data
  • image

Additional Metadata Formats

IIIF Presentation Manifest

Rights & Access

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Credit Line: [Original Source citation], World Digital Library

More about Copyright and other Restrictions

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Cite This Item

Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.

Chicago citation style:

Cameo with a Portrait Bust of Charlemagne. France, 1600. [Place of Publication Not Identified: Publisher Not Identified, to 1699] Photograph. https://www.loc.gov/item/2021670759/.

APA citation style:

(1600) Cameo with a Portrait Bust of Charlemagne. France, 1600. [Place of Publication Not Identified: Publisher Not Identified, to 1699] [Photograph] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/2021670759/.

MLA citation style:

Cameo with a Portrait Bust of Charlemagne. [Place of Publication Not Identified: Publisher Not Identified, to 1699] Photograph. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/2021670759/>.