Mirror (Specchiera)
maker
Unknown
Date1775-1799
Place MadeVenice, Veneto, Italy, Europe
MediumPainted pine, mirrored glass, metal
Dimensions243 x 226 cm (95 11/16 x 89 in.)
ClassificationsFurnishings
Credit LineIsabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston
Accession numberC25s1
eMuseum ID719219
EmbARK ObjectID12146
TMS Source ID1286
Last Updated8/14/24
Status
Not on viewWeb CommentaryComposed of nine panes of mirrored glass, this large mirror has a fluted cornice with a medallion at the center bearing a portrait in profile and decorated with a bow and swags of flowers. On the side and base, ribbons and flowers are in blue on a yellow ground. The six panes of glass at the left and right sides are each engraved with a standing ancient warrior or hero. Two moldings, aligned vertically to hold the mirrored panes in place, are carved with leaves. They are fitted with metal candelabra, which are later additions.
When Isabella compiled a list of things to move from her residence in Brookline, Massachusetts called Green Hill to the museum, she singled out "one large old Venetian mirror."
When Isabella compiled a list of things to move from her residence in Brookline, Massachusetts called Green Hill to the museum, she singled out "one large old Venetian mirror."
BibliographyNotesIsabella Stewart Gardner. Catalogue. Fenway Court. (Boston, 1903), p. 17. (as old Venetian)
Gilbert Wendel Longstreet and Morris Carter. General Catalogue (Boston, 1935), p. 199. (second half of the 18th century)
Fausto Calderai and Alan Chong. Furnishing a Museum: Isabella Stewart Gardner’s Collection of Italian Furniture (Boston, 2011), p. 229, no. 105.
Gilbert Wendel Longstreet and Morris Carter. General Catalogue (Boston, 1935), p. 199. (second half of the 18th century)
Fausto Calderai and Alan Chong. Furnishing a Museum: Isabella Stewart Gardner’s Collection of Italian Furniture (Boston, 2011), p. 229, no. 105.
ProvenanceNotesPurchased by Isabella Stewart Gardner from the antiques dealer Moisè Dalla Torre and Co., Venice on 1 October 1897 for 400 lire.
