Production: Unknown
Folding fan, single leaf paper painted in bodycolour and watercolour, applied pieces of paper and mother-of-pearl. Sticks of carved and pierced ivory (20+2). Rivet of metal; washer of ivory. Front: the front leaf shows 'Caesar and Cleopatra' after Pietro da Cortona; the back chinoiseries.
Folding fan, single leaf paper painted in bodycolour and watercolour, applied pieces of paper and mother-of-pearl. Sticks of carved and pierced ivory (20+2). Rivet of metal; washer of ivory. Front: the front leaf shows 'Caesar and Cleopatra' after Pietro da Cortona (1596-1666) but the design is reversed. The scene shows Caesar giving back the throne to Cleopatra, which her sister had usurped. In the centre, Caesar is wearing a classical cuirass and a wreath of leaves; Cleopatra, dressed in a classical style, is stepping up to him. The scene is set on a podium with columns in the background. On the left, Caesar is reaching for a sceptre, which, together with a crown, is lying on a magnificent throne, which has legs shaped like a lion's mask and leg. Further to the left, Cleopatra's sister is watching the scene; behind her and Caesar soldiers are watching from the background. On the right, two women behind Cleopatra, further two soldiers and a vase. The leaf is bordered by a rococo gold pattern of striped cartouches and plant motifs; some blossoms and leaves are made of applied paper or little mother-of-pearl pieces. The top and edging are of thin gold foile. Back: Chinoiseries in bodycolour and watercolour; the lower half of the leaf has a brown background; the upper part has been left white. From left to right: a tree with two birds, a spray of roses, a Chinese man with a bow and an arrow behind a rock, a Chinese woman with a sunshade and a prunus branch; only the top edging is of gold foile. Sticks: finely carved and pierced striations and scrolls; cartouches showing from left to right: a man playing the flute and a woman playing the mandolin, both in contemporary dress; two half naked boys, one holding a spear, the other wearing an antique helmet playing the drums. The medallion in the centre shows two classical warriors in parallel movement, one of them probably Minerva, and two putti; two half-naked boys, one holding a spear, the other playing the drums but without a helmet. The last medallion shows a woman who is being watched by a man behind a curtain. The reverse is undecorated. Guards; both guards are carved in a similar way except for the decoration on the shoulder. The front guard shows two doves sitting on a quiver with arrows, the background a mandolin and a flute with pierced striations. the guard proper with silver and gold foile shows a vase, a scrolling ornament, a column, two doves holding a wreath, one sitting on a quiver with a sceptre in the background, the other flying; two stars on top.
C.B. Marlay Bequest
Width: 49 cm
Method of acquisition: Bequeathed (1912) by Marlay, Charles Brinsley
18th Century, Late
Production date:
circa
AD 1770
Neoclassical at the front; Oriental style at the back.
Leaf
composed of
paper
watercolour
bodycolour
mother-of-pearl
Rivet
composed of
metal
Sticks+guards+washer
composed of
ivory
Guards
Length 26.2 cm
Sticks+guards
Accession number: MAR.M.237-1912
Primary reference Number: 118053
Stable URI
Owner or interested party:
The Fitzwilliam Museum
Associated department:
Applied Arts
This record can be cited in the Harvard Bibliographic style using the text below:
The Fitzwilliam Museum (2024) "Folding fan" Web page available at: https://data.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/id/object/118053 Accessed: 2024-12-31 22:18:30
To cite this record on Wikipedia you can use this code snippet:
{{cite web|url=https://data.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/id/object/118053
|title=Folding fan
|author=The Fitzwilliam Museum|accessdate=2024-12-31 22:18:30|publisher=The
University of Cambridge}}
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https://data.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/api/v1/objects/object-118053
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