Figure of the Day: Boy on a Snail, 1907

Boy on a Snail
Wiener Keramik
Austria, 1907
The Victoria & Albert Museum

1907 saw Austrian designer Michael Powolny create sketches for this earthenware and enamel figure of a boy on a snail. The modeling and production was completed at the factories of Wiener Keramik, known for their fine work in Vienna. The underside is marked with the monograms, “MP” and “WK.” Wiener Keramik was founded by Michael Powolny and Berthold Löffler in 1905. In 1919, the successful manufactory became known as Gmundner Keramik.

Art Nouveau, n'cest pas?

Mastery of Design: The Schlichtegroll Necklace, 1855

Necklace from a parure
Vienna, c. 1855
The Victoria & Albert Museum

Austrian jeweler Schlichtegroll showed an impressive parure at Paris Universal Exhibition of 1855. The suite was purchased by the V&A after the exhibition as an example of a handsome and important-looking parure which was made inexpensively. The set includes a bracelet, brooch and earrings which were inspired by Seventeenth Century jewels. Schlichtegroll specifically designed the suite to be massed produced cheaply from parts which were interchangeable and standardized. 

It does look quite expensive, doesn’t it? It’s not junk, after all. Take a look at the necklace. It’s made of silver gilt, painted in imitation of enamel. The piece is set with almandine garnets, emeralds and green pastes, pearls and imitation pearls. So, there are some real gems, and some fakes, not unlike some of the less expensive jewels available today. It was meant for the merchant class who wanted to give the impression of being more prosperous than they really were—not quite aristocrats and not laborers. I think it serves its purpose quite handsomely and elegantly. 

Mastery of Design: The Schlichtegroll Necklace, 1855

Necklace from a parure
Vienna, c. 1855
The Victoria & Albert Museum

Austrian jeweler Schlichtegroll showed an impressive parure at Paris Universal Exhibition of 1855. The suite was purchased by the V&A after the exhibition as an example of a handsome and important-looking parure which was made inexpensively. The set includes a bracelet, brooch and earrings which were inspired by Seventeenth Century jewels. Schlichtegroll specifically designed the suite to be massed produced cheaply from parts which were interchangeable and standardized. 

It does look quite expensive, doesn’t it? It’s not junk, after all. Take a look at the necklace. It’s made of silver gilt, painted in imitation of enamel. The piece is set with almandine garnets, emeralds and green pastes, pearls and imitation pearls. So, there are some real gems, and some fakes, not unlike some of the less expensive jewels available today. It was meant for the merchant class who wanted to give the impression of being more prosperous than they really were—not quite aristocrats and not laborers. I think it serves its purpose quite handsomely and elegantly. 

Figure of the Day: Boy on a Snail, 1907

Boy on a Snail
Wiener Keramik
Austria, 1907
The Victoria & Albert Museum

1907 saw Austrian designer Michael Powolny create sketches for this earthenware and enamel figure of a boy on a snail. The modeling and production was completed at the factories of Wiener Keramik, known for their fine work in Vienna. The underside is marked with the monograms, “MP” and “WK.” Wiener Keramik was founded by Michael Powolny and Berthold Löffler in 1905. In 1919, the successful manufactory became known as Gmundner Keramik.
Art Nouveau, n'cest pas?

Mastery of Design: The Hipkins Choker, 1800-70

The Victoria & Albert Museum

Austrian and South German jewelers of the Nineteenth Century took pride in producing the most popular form of neck adornment, Kropfkette (translating to “goiter chain”), a choker consisting of multiple rows of chain with a dramatic clasp at the front. As you might imagine, these chokers were originally worn to hide the ugly swelling caused by goiter, a disease of iodine deficiency endemic in the high Alps.

This choker from the V&A is a perfect example of the Kropfkette showing the traditional use of filigree and the preferred gemstone of the region—garnets. This example is comprised of eight graduated rows of box chain, with a large rectangular snap clasp at the front. The filigree scrolls are set with garnets and pearls. Made in Austria between 1800 and 1870, this necklace is in near-perfect condition.

Painting of the Day: A Portrait of Queen Victoria, 1887

The Victoria & Albert Museum

Painted in 1887 for her Golden Jubilee, this unusually casual portrait of Queen Victoria is the work of Heinrich Anton von Angeli. The painting, which is on loan to the Victoria & Albert Museum from HRH Prince Michael of Kent since 1984 is considered one of the finest works of the Austrian portraitist (1840-1925) and was greatly favored by Queen Victoria and her family.


Victoria loved the portrait so much that it assumed the place of honor at Windsor Castle which had previously been occupied by the famous portrait by Franz Xaver Winterhalter, another favorite of the Queen.

This painting is actually the second of two identical portraits painted by Von Angeli. The painting was so favored that Queen Victoria asked the artist to create a close copy for her Jubilee in 1887. The original portrait was created in 1875.

During the sittings with Von Angeli in 1875, the Queen described the portrait in a letter to her daughter : “It is quite ‘en face;’ hands crossed before me as I generally stand; my usual Evng. Cap - & a black satin dress cut square as I wear them in the winter.” Queen Victoria further described the painting with delight, saying, that it is “absurdly like” and “a marvellous likeness - as if I looked at myself in the glass.”