SHELL CAMEO - Shell cameo cutting has been around since at least the 15th century, and was almost always made in Italy. Shell cameos became extremely popular at the onset of the 19th century, because they were less expensive than stone-carved cameos.
Why are they sometimes pink and sometimes beige/brown? Well, shell cameos with a pinkish hue come from the shell of the giant conch, while cameos with brownish shades come from the helmet shell.
2 comments:
Cameos are my Favorite Antique jewelry of all time. I have a couple of hard stone ones, and a whole bunch of shell. I love them all. Thanks for the great post!
I do it for you, Kat!
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