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Lot Essay
This Saint George pendant is a confection of the late nineteenth-century. Although comparable in style and construction to the Cleopatra pendant in the British Museum, London (Waddesdon Bequest WB. 151) believed to be first half of the 19th century, this pendant is almost certainly by Alfred André (1859-1907) as the design is related to a mold used by this Parisian goldsmith during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. André's surviving molds were published in Joyaux Renaissance, Une splendeur retrouvée, and were made not only to record original works but also to restore damaged works as well as design new jewels. The mold in question illustrated Pl. III, d, was also used by André to make another St George and the Dragon pendant, acquired by Ferdinand de Rothschild after 1874, probably from Frederick Spitzer (1815-1890) still on display at Waddesdon Manor, The Rothschild Collection (inv. no. 866.1).
The present pendant, with its popular theme of Saint George and the dragon, would have complemented the 'Renaissance museum' as created by the Rothschild family in keeping with the then fashion, where jewels were the centerpiece of the display. Admired for their craftsmanship and preciousness, the pendants were also a reminder of their associations with great rulers and collectors, from kings to merchants.
The present pendant, with its popular theme of Saint George and the dragon, would have complemented the 'Renaissance museum' as created by the Rothschild family in keeping with the then fashion, where jewels were the centerpiece of the display. Admired for their craftsmanship and preciousness, the pendants were also a reminder of their associations with great rulers and collectors, from kings to merchants.