Cameo---30 years in the making!

[Doc Mark]

No, it didn't really take me 30 years to carve this cameo, just 30 years to finish it! The story goes like this. Not long after I studied how to carve cameos while traveling in an out of Italy while I was stationed on the U.S.S. Nimitz, I saw this fascinating statue in the Vatican Museum. It is a Hellenistic work from the First Century BC, a period which is often called the "Rococo of Antiquity". It was actually a fountain originally. Any way, I started carving it while I was still steaming around on the ship. When I got home I was almost finished when the background part of the shell fractured completely across the top! I was so P.O. that I tossed the stupid thing, still mounted on the piece of wood I was using to hold it in my old Pana-Vise, into a drawer and forgot about it. Every once in a while I would stumble across it and get mad all over again. Then a few months ago, I bought a new book on Cameos and read that some jewelers were taking old broken Cameos and cutting off the entire backgrounds and remounting these pieces as earrings. Well the light dawned and I decided to finish what I had started. I completed the carving details and VERY carefully removed the colored background shell. I then carved an Ivory frame to match the size of the original oval and mounted the carving on a piece of felt that approximated the original color. I'm not satisfied with the "fuzzy" appearance of the background so I am still looking for a more suitable material to redo the mounting.

The subject is a Marine Centaur (or Triton) carrying off a rather forlorn Nereid. The two Erotes (Putti in Italian sculptures) are mocking her. One has his ear cupped to listen to her laments, the other one has his finger to his lips to hush her.

The original Cameo, without the ivory frame was 2.5 inches wide. So there is a lot happening in a rather small area.

 

[Marrinan]

Good gracious Mark. That is fabulous! Such exquisite workmanship. Fred

 

[Roger Bleile]

Mark,

Thanks for this wonderful work of decorative art! You never fail to impress us with your cameo creations. Since you mentioned that you would like to change out the felt background, may I suggest malachite.

Thanks,
Roger

 

[thughes]

Really really stunning.
Todd

 

[DakotaDocMartin]

Yep, same here... I don't like the fuzzy background. I think Lapis Lazuli would look good. Sort of like the night sky.

 

[Eugene Carkoski]

I would recommend a lapis background, some that has a touch of white in it

 

[DakotaDocMartin]

A lapis background would be nice. Like the night sky.

 

[jb1983]

Beautiful work

 

[Brian Marshall]

Hi Doc,

You might consider a carnelian or agate slab of a similar color to your original shell - or even a slab of shell that contains the original reddish color...

None of these should be difficult to find.


Brian

 

[rod]

Mark,

A splendid and inspiring piece, I love to see this kind of work, and other artworks allied to engraving, it expands my understanding and appreciation, so thank you! Cameo is a still a bit of a mystery to me, now I am inspired to look into the technique.

Rod

 

[Doc Mark]

Thanks for the suggestions. And I too love Lapis, but I think it would be too harsh a contrast for this work. Unfortunately, I don't have the equipment to do any lapidary work. The carving has a very complex uneven concave back curvature which would make it very difficult to make it fit against a hard surface. That's why I took a mold of the entire cameo before I removed the background. That way it was a perfect fit when covered with the felt.

 

[didyoung]

that is a true work of art!
wish i had some better words for you.......WOW!!

 

[JackJellies]

Stunning! I really like the blue background.

 

[mdengraver]

Glad you lived to see the day that your remarkable, exquisite piece was realized!

 

[GTJC460]

That's amazing work!!!

 

[Beathard]

OMG. YOU ARE A REAL ARTIST. I bow to you.

 

[mrthe]

Amazing work!!!

 

[mtgraver]

Mark,
Cow horn has the ability in some cases to be colored similar to tortoise shell, which is my first thought. Tortoise shell has varied color from yellow to the reddish brown tones. Drop me a note if interested. Outstanding piece!!
Mark

 

[Mike Fennell]

Beautiful work, Doc. Congratulations on completing it.

Mark's suggestion of cow horn for the background is intriguing. There is a broad range of quality in horn. Horns from dairy breeds such as Jersey or Guernsey might be best, as they seem to be more dense and uniform than those of most beef breeds, such as un-polled Hereford.

 

[Sam]

Mark, that is a masterpiece, and a breathtaking one indeed. Absolutely fantastic...you are THE MAN!