c. 1790-1800 Georgian Neoclassical Pendant

A lovely c. 1790-1800 English Georgian neoclassical pendant, featuring an ‘en grisaille’ enamel medallion of lovers with lyre against a ground of aubergine purple, set within a circular locket frame with lidded glass and enamel inlay. The setting’s palette of white, royal blue, and periwinkle is extremely representative of jewelry made during the mid-Georgian era. A pendant of the same type is in the British Museum (accession n. 1909,1201.270). First-wave neoclassical jewels made during the last quarter of the 18th century (1775-1800) can be characterized by a studied replication of Greo-Roman style art, especially those ‘en grisaille’ with figural subjects. Intended to mimic red-figure painting of ancient Greek pottery, as well as Roman bas-relief friezes, these neoclassical ‘en grisaille’ compositions feature tonally neutral or near-monochrome drawings against a plain dark ground. Designs were first created by artists like Jean Guillaume Moitte (1746-1810) and Jean François Janinet (1752 – 1814), then disseminated through prints, and finally copied across decorative arts mediums such as ceramics, glass, interior design, textiles, and jewelry.

The present pendant’s central figures share compositional similarity with several neoclassical paintings of the same theme (e.g. “The Loves of Paris and Helen” (1788) and “Sappho and Phaon” (1802) by Jacques-Louis David , “Young Lovers Playing the Lyre” (1802) by Adele Romanee). While the medallion may simply portray a genre scene of lovers playing the lyre, the female figure’s hands over the male’s eyes may be a reference to Orpheus and Eurydice. According to Greek mythology, the demi-divine musician, Orpheus, lost his beloved wife, Eurydice, when the latter was bitten by a snake. Orpheus sang his grief with a lyre, his music so moving that the gods granted him protection to journey into the underworld. United once more with Eurydice, Orpheus pleaded with Hades to bring her back to the world of the living. This request was permitted under one condition: Orpheus must never glance back whilst journeying above. However, at the last moment, Orpheus loses faith and looks back, condemning Eurydice to the underworld forever. Know one cannot enter the realm of Hades twice while alive, Orpheus dies so he may return to his wife.
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