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Bonhams

Lot 222

WILHELM SCHMIDT: AN EXCEPTIONAL BOULDER OPAL, GEM-SET AND HARDSTONE BUST, CIRCA 1890Portraying Mars, the Roman god of War, in Ajax helmet surmounted by a vulture, sculpted from a single boulder opal, his bearded face and neck and the vulture's legs and bald head carved in dark brown ironstone matrix resembling deeply patinated bronze, the winged helmet and the vulture's plumage highlighted by utilising the thin layers of precious opal within the host rock, the opal with additional intricately engraved feather and scroll detail, the helmet and vulture's eyes inlaid with brilliant-cut diamonds, the vulture wearing a ropetwist collar, backed in engraved yellow gold. The torso clad in engraved fish-scale gold armour, the draped folds of the toga rendered in carved chalcedony, with rose-cut diamond fastening. Mounted on a silver circular collar with gold acanthus leaf scrollwork and set with three cabochon turquoises and a single cabochon emerald. The whole on a rectangular tapered, polished hardstone pedestal of exquisite purple and green colouration. Each face of the pedestal in-set with an oval cameo withing gold ropetwist frame; an idealised Roman goddess in sardonyx at the front, and three labradorite cameos to the sides and back variously depicting Minerva, Cleopatra and Isis, on a green hardstone base, signed W.Schmidt on reverse of toga, repair in chalcedony toga, three diamonds deficient, lengths: 31 cm total, the bust 14 cm, the plinth 14 cm, Footnotes:ProvenanceHerbert Maxwell Stuart (1842-1921) The date of purchase by Maxwell Stuart is unknown but the sale is mentioned in a typed transcript of a letter of reminiscences, written in 1926, by Wilhelm Schmidt to his friend and business associate Dr George Frederick Kunz of Tiffany, 'Bust of Mars, in opal matrix, size 5 inches, face and neck in brown matrix, Ajax helmet in opal of finest quality...Purchased by Mr Herbert Maxwell Stuart of Scarthingwell Hall, Tadcaster.' Schmidt continues, 'Mr Herbert Maxwell Stuart, the lineal descendant of the Stuarts and owner of their estates in Scotland and Yorkshire was a purchaser of many of my works. He was greatly interested in precious stones.'Maxwell Stuart amassed a large collection of unmounted specimen gems, including the largest facetted topaz, known as the Maxwell Stuart Topaz. Part of his collection was sold after his death at Christie's on 22 June 1921, including several opal cameos, unattributed in the catalogue but most likely carved by Schmidt. This bust was not part of the sale. It was purchased, unattributed, as a beautiful object of vertu by the family who currently own it. This highly important signed opal carving by the prodigiously gifted Victorian cameo engraver Wilhelm Schmidt (1845 – 1938) represents a uniquely important example of Schmidt's pioneering opal carving technique, the scale of ambition setting it apart from his other known works. Until recently, it was believed Schmidt never signed his work and this is the only fully signed piece so far traced, underscoring its exceptional importance. Wilhelm Schmidt was born in Idar Oberstein, the European centre of the mineral, gemstone and lapidary trades, where large deposits of carnelian and other agates, found during the 16th - 17th centuries, gave rise to an illustrious gem engraving industry. This instilled in Schmidt 'a great love of art in every expression' and despite being born with an eye defect, he conceived a passion for gem engraving from an early age. In 1860, at the age of fifteen, he was sent to Paris, as an apprentice in the lapidary studio of his cousin, Louis Purper. The head of the studio was the cameo-cutter, Arsène, whom the young Schmidt came to admire greatly and who trained him in the waning neo-classical tradition.Schmidt stood out as a remarkable talent, winning prizes for drawing and draughtsmanship, but by the time he graduated, the voracious thirst for cameos and intaglios by connoisseur collectors and students of antiquity was rapidly drying up. Schmidt's cousin closed his studio to pursue a more profitable career as a pearl dealer, whilst Wilhelm struggled on for several tough years trying to make ends meet as a gem engraver. He found work by cutting portrait cameos and an early commission was from an elderly American, Mr Fox, whom Schmidt described as 'practically the only important dealer in precious stones in New York', for onyx cameos of General Grant and Abraham Lincoln, heroes of the American Civil War.At the outbreak of the Franco-Prussian War, Schmidt was expelled from Paris and returned home in 1869. Much to his relief, he was not called up to fight against his adopted country, or Napoleon III, to whom he referred patriotically as 'mon Empereur'. He remembered in old age, 'I shall always gratefully remember France, as the country where I learnt and studied the art of precious stone engraving. Therein I found pleasure, happiness, and contentment throughout my long life.'In 1870, he emigrated for the second time, setting up in London an engraving business trading alongside his gem-importer brother Louis. London directories from 1870 list 'Schmidt and Nourick, importers of precious stones' at 59 Hatton Garden, and by 1872, the firm was styled 'Louis Schmidt', below whose name appeared 'Schmidt, W., Cameo Engraver'. In the same way he took his French identity to heart whilst living in Paris, Schmidt became thoroughly anglicised, calling himself William, speaking excellent English and proudly becoming a naturalised citizen in 1887.London, like Paris, had a rapidly dwindling pool of specialist patrons of the glyptic arts but Schmidt successfully navigated the macro-economics of the jewellery industry by adapting to new tastes and by pioneering innovative techniques. He carved and sold numerous cameos, for use in ornamental jewellery, to the best London jewellery firms working in the fashionable Archaeological Style, including John Brogden, Guiliano, Castellani, Child & Child and Edwin Streeter, as well as to leading jewellers in America such as Marcus and Tiffany. Although these carvings were unsigned and the retailers did not credit the engraver in their finished jewels, this and his portrait cameo business, afforded him enough money to live comfortably with his second wife, six daughters and one stepson.Schmidt's gemstone-dealing brother supplied him with a plentiful source of unusual and rare specimens with which he could work. His wide repertoire of materials included labradorite, malachite, tourmaline, crocidolite, moonstone, zircon, tourmaline, malachite, lapis lazuli, sapphire, amethyst, topaz and, most unusual of all, opal that was to become his trademark.In 1874, Schmidt invented a distinctive and challenging new technique of carving opal to create striking three-dimensional sculptures through its contrasting layers. To quote the late scholar Gertrud Seidmann, a connoisseur of Schmidt's work, to whom we are indebted for much of our knowledge of him:'Opal cameos, if rare, were not unknown (in the 19th century) but Schmidt had invented a novel technique: instead of carving the whole cameo from precious opal, he used blanks with a thin layer of precious opal overlaying the matrix, in the same way in which the contrasted layers of agates were traditionally used to set off the background.'In 1878, London jeweller John Brogden unveiled a necklace set with opal cameos - carved by Schmidt - at the Paris Exhibition. The necklace caused a sensation and was awarded a gold medal and high praise from the press. The Telegraph described it as a 'wonder of wonders'. However, only Brogden was credited and awarded the Cross of the... This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: ** VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com

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