Empire necklace with three Cameos

Necklace, 14 kt gold and consisting of three cameos with mythological and classical scenes after the Danish sculptor Bert Thorvaldsen (1770-1840) Empire
weight: 50.2 grams
Neoclassicism was an art movement in the late 18th and early 19th centuries that focused on examples from the ancient Greeks and Romans. Cameo and intaglios from this early period were fanatically collected in the 18th century, for example by Empress Catherine of Russia. Slowly the cut stones spread to fashionable jewellery at the beginning of the 19th century. Scenes from mythological stories were depicted by artists such as Bertel Thorwaldsen from Denmark or the Englishman John Flaxman in drawings and sculptures. Flaxman worked for the Wedgwood porcelain factory. In Italy, the neoclassical ideal was transformed into meticulously carved shell cameos,  which became a prized possession. It is not surprising that these small works of art eventually ended up in jewellery. They combined beautifully with the graceful, thin white cotton dresses that dominated fashion.
Necklace c.1810-1820 set in gold, with three cameos carved from the precious Cassis Madegascariens shell.From left to right:Aurora (Eos), goddess of the dawn rides a two-wheeled chariot over the clouds in the sky with a flaming torch to dispel the night.Hermes (Mercury) the messenger of the gods brings the child Dionysius (Bacchus) to a nymph.Apollo, the most important god after Zeus, is depicted in his golden chariot drawn by four horses. A quiver filled with arrows dangles from his back.