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Page 17
The gem-cutting processes were not greatly modified for many years
after Shakespeare's death, so that a representation of the wheel and
mill used in 1750 gives a fairly good general idea of the _modus
operandi_. The large wooden wheel, whose axis is the second pillar
within the frame, is bent, and makes an elbow under the wheel to
receive the impulsion of a bar that serves instead of a turn-handle.
On the right side of the frame, where the boy stands, is the
turn-handle which sets the wheel in motion by means of the elbow of
its axis. So that if the wooden wheel be twenty times larger than the
iron one, a hundred turns of the larger wheel will cause a thousand
revolutions of the smaller one. The method of holding the diamond in
place over the iron wheel, when in motion, so that it presses upon the
latter and is polished thereby, is shown in the lower right-hand
corner of the plate.
The German traveller, Paul Hentzner, who visited England in 1598,
toward the end of Elizabeth's life, describes her jewelling in the
following words:
"The Queen had in her ears two pearls with very rich drops; she
wore false hair and that red; upon her head she had a small crown; her
bosom was uncovered, and she had on a necklace of exceedingly fine
jewels. She was dressed in white silk, bordered with pearls of the
size of beans, and over it a mantle of black silk shot with silver
threads; her train was very long. Instead of a chain, she had an
oblong collar of gold and jewels".
[Illustration: FROM A PORTRAIT OF QUEEN ELIZABETH In the possession of
his Grace the Duke of Devonshire, K.G., Hardwick Hall. The queen has
jewels in her hair, a pearl eardrop, and two necklaces, one fitting
closely to the neck, the other falling over the breast. The stiff
brocade skirt is embroidered with a wonderful array of aquatic birds
and animals. On the left, the cushion of the chair of state is
embroidered with the queen's monogram. Surmounting the chair is a
crystal ball. The original canvas measures 90 x 66 inches.]
In addition to this display the traveller tells us that the queen's
right hand was fairly sparkling with jewelled rings.
Aside from his portrayal of jewels in his numerous portraits, Holbein
ranked as the master designer of jewels in his day. Many of the finest
of these designs have been preserved for us and can be seen in the
British Museum, to which they were bequeathed by Sir Hans Sloane in
1753. There are 179 separate pieces, usually pen-and-ink sketches. The
execution of the jewels from these designs is believed to have been
mainly done by Hans of Antwerp, known as Hans Anwarpe, a friend of
Holbein, who settled in London in 1514, and was appointed goldsmith to
King Henry VIII, for whom he produced many jewels for New Year's
gifts.[23]
[Footnote 23: H. Clifford Smith, "Jewellery", London [1908], pp. 211,
213.]
In judging of the jewels figured in portraits we must remember that
the artist has often modified them to bring them into greater harmony
with their immediate surroundings. This, in some cases, may lead him
to make of a somewhat inartistically designed jewel a beautifully
proportioned one. Again, he may be led to exaggerate the size of the
precious stones or pearls, and to intensify or deepen their colors. A
recent instance regards a portrait of the former queen of Spain by one
of the foremost Spanish artists of our day. The royal lady was
depicted wearing an enormous pearl; however, the artist informed the
author that the real pearl was much smaller than the painted one, but
that, in portraying it, a better decorative effect was obtained by
increasing its size. Whether Holbein (1497-1543), with his Dutch
exactness of portrayal, was led into any similar exaggerations we can
never tell, as little as we can know anything definite regarding the
true size of the jewels shown in the portraits by the Italian Zucchero
(1529-1566), the Fleming Lucas de Heere (1524-1584), or by any other
of the portrait painters of Elizabeth's time.
In a very modest way the addition of gilded scarf-pins, brooches,
chains, etc., not owned by the sitters, was not uncommonly practised
thirty or forty years ago, when colored tintypes were popular. These
were painted on the photographs, much to the gratification of those
who ordered them for distribution among their friends.
The court-jewellers of France in Shakespeare's day rivalled, though
they did not excel, those of England. Among them a prominent place
belongs to Francois Dujardin (or Desjardin), goldsmith of Charles IX
(1560-1574) and Henri III (1574-1589). When a verification and an
inventory of the French Crown Jewels were made on August 1, 1574,
after the death of Charles IX, the expert examination was entrusted to
Fran�ois Dujardin, who is termed "orfebvre et lapidaire du Roy". The
goldsmith's art was passed down from father to son in this family: a
second F. Dujardin (b. ca. 1565) mounted the parures made for
Elizabeth of Austria, daughter of Henri IV and Maria de' Medici. In
the reign of Henri IV and the succeeding regency of Maria de' Medici,
Josse de Langerac, received as master goldsmith in 1594, and the
brothers Rogier, are noted as leading goldsmiths who, besides
executing many fine jewels, frequently made loans of money to the
Queen Regent, and seem to have experienced great difficulty in
securing full payment. Corneille Rogier set the jewels worn at her
marriage by Anne d'Autriche, wife of Louis XIII. Two brothers, each
bearing the name Pierre Courtois, are also noted in old records. One
of them, at the time of his death, in 1611, occupied two apartments
with two shops in the Louvre; the shop of the other had the sign "Aux
Trois Roys", probably referring to the "Three Kings of the East", the
Magi of the Gospel, very appropriate patrons for goldsmiths.[24]
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