This listing is for the commesso cameo shown below. The commesso pendant is 63mm (12.48") X 50mm (1.97"). All of This style Commesso's cameos are a replica of one of our antique cameos that used the "commesso style" dating back to the sixteenth century many years ago. Commesso is a bas-relief composition of precisely cut gem materials (pietra dura) combined with other elements to form an assembled cameo. The commesso technique differs from a cameo in that it is not carved completely from one piece of material, but put together in the manner of a mosaic to form the image. The art of commesso began its popularity in sixteenth century Florence and remained popular throughout Europe until the early twentieth century.
These are a very special piece carved and signed by the artist, Romano. This cameo is set in a bezel setting with an enhancer (5 mm). Each of the cameos have either coral, onyx, mother of pearl (various colors), and jade, or a combination of gems. All hand carved to make up a beautiful piece of artwork. Highly labor intensive and very hard to accomplish. It is set in Italian silver with vermeil. Comes packed in a black velvet box and certificate of authenticity for gift giving.
Item number Special order 3,4,or 5. 2.2022
******************
Welcome to CASCO Cameos, LLC.CASCO Cameos, LLC. is the sole provider of cameos in North America. The founding company, CASCO s.r.l. is located in Torre del Greco and was founded in 1928. It is the leading manufacturer of cameos utilizing traditional methods that have been used for over 5000 years. The factory is located in Torre del Greco, Italy, the capital city of coral and cameos, nestled between the foot of Mount Vesuvius and the Mediterranean Sea, overlooking the bay of Naples. The materials used to produce the great works of are: Sardonyx shell, Carnelian shells, pink shells, Tiger shells, lava, coral, turquoise, and semi precious stones. Every cameo produced is an original, hand carved , not machine or laser carved piece of artwork. Each piece is like wearing a sculpture, a panting produced just for you. Cameo production is a very delicate operation. From the selection of raw material to cutting and carving them into beautiful creations, our master carvers pay great attention and have great pride in what they produce. Since ancient times, cameos have been prized by collectors and jewelers.
The creative process for the cameo begins where the shell divers appropriately select specimens from 90 to 100 feet below the water's surface. The divers' harvest journeys to the shops of craftsmen in Torre del Greco, where the artist painstakingly searches for sea shells free of flaws and cracks. A new dimension of artistic skill and aesthetic appeal was added to cameo carving when it was discovered that many stones - and later, shells - were made of different colored layers. This allowed the artist to create a striking contrast between the raised (relief) layer and the flat (background) layer. Unlike our competitors who use modern machinery to assist in the initial stages of the process, our master craftsman performs the intricate details still carved by hand.
The individual piece to engrave is mounted with tree sap on a wooden stick. After sketching a picture of what he intends to carve, the engraving begins using steel burins. The goldsmith work is strictly hand-made and the techniques used are part of the most remarkable Neapolitan and Italian artistic tradition. Gold frames, like cameos themselves, are created in all shapes and sizes, the most popular being the oval. A gold metal ribbon (bezel or gallery wire) is wrapped around the perimeter and folded over the edge of each single cameo. In this fashion no two can be exactly alike in their curvature, thickness and contour. The bezel is then surrounded by the most decorative part of the frame: gold-moldings, twisted ribbons, double wire braids, mixed ropes, strings of pearls, hallow-cane, etc., and embellished with filigree patterns, or diamond settings.
Every single Cameo has a history in itself--an exemplary story of devotion and sacrifices of a long and hard apprenticeship. It's a rigorous selection where fantasy, creativity and knowledge of the drawing are essential to give life to cameos narrated in only 2 mm of thickness.
Cameos are more than just jewelry, they are a personal item to be cherished and carefully conserved and past down from generation to generations to come. Each one has its own uniqueness, and never are there two pieces produced that are exactly alike. This is what makes cameos even more special.