Hair Buckle

It was early on in John Miers’s career that he began to advertise his ability to reduce profiles to a small size ‘for Rings, Breast Pins, Bracelets &c., also for Watch Papers … the likeness perfectly preserved’. It seems probable therefore that he originally painted this lady’s profile on plaster before scaling it down to a size appropriate to a brooch. With great skill the detail of the lady’s veiled head dress, curls and ribbons have all been beautifully retained.

Dating to the 1780s and signed Miers under the bust-line, the silhouette has been placed within a neatly plaited border of blonde hair secured at the base with a little gold buckle. It is housed in a good quality gold frame that can be worn either as a pendant or as a brooch pin.