Swiss, Basel
Miniature Male Bust, 17th century
Glass with gold leaf, 1.1 x 1 x 0.3 cm (7/16 x 3/8 x 1/8 in.)
This Swiss object is a very small bust of a man made with gold leaf applied to a piece of octagonal glass. The man is shown from the chest up, turned partly to our right. He is rendered in gold leaf that has a crumbly appearance and with sparse, squiggly lines and blotches on or through the gold leaf. The man is wearing a wide hat and a coat with a flap. One eye is white and the other is green. Part of his face is covered with a white blotch. The area around the man is mostly green and brown, with an abstract design including dotted and washed areas.
Little Salon
Commentary
Isabella Stewart Gardner kept meticulous records of many of her acquisitions. In keeping with this legacy, object information is continually being reviewed, updated, and enriched in order to give greater access to the collection.