Victorian Micro Mosaic Insect Pendant

My favorite of the micro-mosaic pieces are the wonderfully rare and fanciful insects. Circa 1870, this little beetle is designed in a combination of tiny matte and mirrored glass tiles, known as "tesserae"; we set it in an early 19th century pendant frame, crafted in sterling silver set with a halo of foiled rose-cut diamonds.

Details: Measuring approximately 1 5/8" long from top of the bail to bottom of the drop. The frame is sterling silver with 14k gold connections to the diamond studded bail.

Condition: In excellent antique condition, with a light patina to the metal and some slight darkening of the diamond foils. The tiles are complete, no obvious missing pieces.

History: Mosaics, fashioned of small pieces of glass or hardstone called tesserae, have been produced for literally thousands of years, with earliest examples attributed to the Ancient Greeks. Micro-mosaics were developed in the late 18th century by the Italian craftsman Giacomo Raffaelli to cater to the "Grand Tour" crowd; in the 18th and 19th century a tour of archeological and historial sites throughout Europe was considered an essential part of an upper-class person's education, and this rite of passage became known as the "Grand Tour".

As these tiny treasures grew in popularity craftsmen in Rome teamed with jewelers in Florence to produce beautifully designed and sometimes impossibly small-scale mosiac art to set in decorative objects and jewels for the elite to purchase as a remembrance of their trip.