Thursday, March 8, 2012

Mastery of Design: The Crouching Cat Ring, 1825

Gold ring in the Roman Style
Set with an agate Cameo.
England, 1825
The Townshend Collection at
The Victoria & Albert Museum





Made in the ancient Roman style which had become quite fashionable in early Nineteenth Century England, this gold ring is surmounted by an oval bezel with a layered agate cameo depicting a crouching cat. 

The ring was made in 1825 and fulfilled the growing demand for jewels based on designs from antiquity.  This jewel was included along with the bequest of the massive collection of gems amassed by the Rev. Chauncey Hare Townshend.





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