Sardonyx cameo of Juno and Jupiter by Giovanni Pichler. Italian, 18th centu

A sardonyx cameo of Juno and Jupiter by Giovanni Pichler.

Italian, late 18th century.

Set into a French 18 carat brooch with natural pearls and a mother of pearl backing.

The cameo measures 3.8 x 2.9cm.

The brooch measures 5.4 x 4.5cm.

The came depicts the figure ion Juno standing beside her peacock, her head turned with finger raised towards her husband Jupiter who rests at the base of a tree. The cameo is signed at the base ‘?IX?EP’, the Greek translation of ‘Pichler’

Giovanni Pichler (1734-91) was born in Naples and trained by his father Antonio Pichler in the art of gem engraving in Rome. In 1769 he was appointed gem engraver to Emperor Joseph II in Vienna. Pichler's fame rapidly increased and he became a favourite of Grand Tourists. He also trained a number of the most famous engravers of the next generation including Filippo Rega and Antonio Berini. Upon his death in 1791 his workshop, which had become the pre-eminent gem engraving establishment in Rome, was inherited by his half brother Luigi Pichler. He went on to work for the Habsburg Imperial family in Vienna and so impressed the French court jeweller François-Régnault Nitot that the latter tried to persuade him to move to Paris. Luigi received many distinctions later in life including a diploma from the Academy of St Luke and membership of the Academy in Venice, as well as, in 1839, Knight's Cross of the Order of St Gregory the Great and, in 1842, of the Order of St Sylvester.