Only rarely do we find these 19th century gem-et ornate frames, Napoleon III era (c.1850-70s) and of all we've found, this might be the most glorious, partly from size, and partly because all of those set Persian turquoise (but 1) remain in place, as do all of the garnets (but 1). The fronton, or top crest has a large oval cabochon, and I see no cracks or chips in any of the gems. The bronze frame is heavy, very thick gauge, Neo-Renaissance and you see the curling neck and head of the Griffen there on each leg. The flat glass is in place, and aperture is 6.5" x 4.75" oval, easy to access by taking out the 2 mounting screws that hold the back/easel stand in place. A truly spectacular frame, and we sometimes see similar ones of Austrian origin, so I will leave open this might be either French or Austrian, mid-1800s. Comes to me out of an important and anonymous estate being disbursed in parts, and out of which we've brought you a constant thrill of finest treasures. More to come!
Very good to excellent condition for age and type. As noted above, I find 1 small turquoise cabochon out of its setting at about the 10 o'clock position, border to aperture, and a red/garnet stone missing along with its mount on one of the griffen legs, also marked, and quite hard to even notice. I did not take a high polish approach to this one, but one certainly can bring it up more with polish. The vast majority of the kiln-fired white enamel work is intact. Beautiful old thing - fit for Royalty!
