A ceramic ornament with a richly colored print of an original watercolor painting of a Victorian Lover's Eye brooch. The original brooch (from which this painting has been adapted) is from the Skier Collection (Cat. 82): English, ca. 1840, with a border of faceted amethysts symbolizing constancy and sincerity. 3".

THE HISTORY: Lover's Eyes were a jewelry trend c.1785-1830 of brooches set with tiny watercolor portraits on ivory. Since they were cropped to eyes, they were in many ways more direct and intimate than traditional miniature portraits; but also because they were just eyes, they were often used as daring public testimonies of clandestine love affairs with mystery lovers.