How to age an antique cameo finally revealed
Today we gonna talk about antique cameos and the best way to understand them for getting an authentic old one!
The Age of a Cameo Necklace or Brooch
Antique cameo brooches & pendants, rings and earrings are for sure the most wanted cameos: let's say "antique italian cameo jewelry" in general is the top of our selection.
The most famous websites show you antique cameos, old and vintage: the word "victorian" is used more for identify a style more than the real age of a product. Every cameo in these websites is described as old, estate, victorian, edwardian or things like this.
I don't wanna go too much in depth in this polemic but I can say that online there are more victorian cameos than cameos done in these times .. it sounds me strange ... but you know I'm strange too :) so no much worries about.
Let's anyway call things with their proper name: and let's call plastic or FAKE what has nothing to deal with the real Italian art of cameo jewelry.
A cameo ring can be old, estate, victorian, edwardian or things like this but it's hard to believe that you can have all of these featuring for 14.99 $ or less.
but let's back to us ... for sure you'd like to know the answer to these 3 different questions below
The 3 Main questions
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How to distinguish an antique one from a new
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How much is my antique cameo worth?
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How to age an antique cameo
Let's talk about 3 easy tricks to answer these questions
How can I distinguish a new cameo from an antique one
I think I can easily answer to the first one with this post on my blog ... and as I often do I'll use images to enhance the concept cause, you know, images speak louder than words.
So let's reveal 3 simple tricks you should use ... but first of all, focus your eyes on the next image of cameo pendants for 10 seconds
1.....2 ......3 ... 4.5.6.7.8.9.10 .... (hey they were not 10 seconds) .... :)
Here the 3 tips to distinguish an old cameo:
The conch shell is fundamental for a right appraisal
1)Usually the shell (on which the cameo is made) looks ticker than the one used for the new ones
Why this happen? Easy to answer: there was not pollution and that's why conch shells were better and thicker.
Basically the starting material was better and bigger.
The tridimensional effect must be impressive
2)The care for the details is extraordinary but not redundant, the cameo itself has more 3D effect looking like a sculpture rather than a over-curly woman
Just think about to a roman or a greek sculpture, think about Renaissance, think about Michelangelo's David, think about Canova's masterpieces.
The nose of the woman should be "a greek nose"
3)The woman represented is usually more real, not idealized and shows sometimes a greek profile (look at the nose)
This happen often but not always, so a "not greek nose" doesn't mean the cameo is new!
How much is old cameo jewelry worth ?
Every cameo is different and need to be looked like an unique artistic masterpiece: the tricks I gave you are basically main guidelines to start an appraisal in the best way.
Let's point out that "Antique doesn't mean beautiful": there are only good cameos or bad cameos.
We need to say that, for sure, in the past times artist were more focused on creating unique pieces for a very selected clientele. This basically means more time on every single piece, and consequently more quality.
Coming back to my Family Business: in the '30 my grandpa was used to work more than me now but probably with less stress :) .
How to give an age to a cameo?
I've answered to this question describing how you can tell if a cameo is new or antique.
About the styles that identify the age of a cameo I suggest you this post on our blog
For getting even more in depth with this, I suggest you to read my ebooks
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