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Chatelaine with Watch Thumbnail
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Chatelaine with Watch

French (Artist)
18th century
gold, gilt metal, agate, rock crystal
(18th and 19th Centuries , Jewelry)

Decorative chatelaines were worn by men and women as pendants and multifunctional devices for carrying utensils like watches, signet seals, and sewing accessories. They were suspended from the waistband by means of the hook at the top, and the flexible, separate panels adjusted to the movements of the wearer. The watch and chatelaine are decorated with elaborate scrollwork and garlands over beautifully striated agate. The chatelaine is fitted with a watch key and a revolving rock crystal seal, neither of which were likely made at the same time as the chatelaine and watch.

Inscription

Inscribed: frs. (frères) Melly à Paris.

Provenance
Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object. Learn more about provenance at the Walters.

Henry Walters, Baltimore [date and mode of acquisition unknown]; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.

Exhibitions

2010 Bedazzled: 5,000 Years of Jewelry. El Paso Museum of Art, El Paso.
2006-2009 Bedazzled: 5,000 Years of Jewelry from the Walters Art Museum. Frist Center for the Visual Arts, Nashville; The John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art, Sarasota; The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore.
1984-1987 Objects of Adornment: Five Thousand Years of Jewelry from the Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore. Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum, New York; Chrysler Museum of Art, Norfolk; Carnegie Museum of Art, Pittsburgh; San Antonio Museum of Art, San Antonio; Philbrook Museum of Art, Tulsa; Honolulu Academy of Arts, Honolulu; New Orleans Museum of Art, New Orleans; Milwaukee Art Museum, Milwaukee; Minneapolis Institute of Art, Minneapolis; Toledo Museum of Art, Toledo; The John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art, Sarasota.
1987 Jewelry from the Walters Art Gallery and the Zucker Family Collection. The Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore.
1979-1980 Jewelry - Ancient to Modern. The Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore.
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Geographies

France (Place of Origin)

Measurements

watch: 6 15/16 in. (17.6 cm);
chatelaine: 5 in. (12.7 cm) (l.)

Credit Line

Acquired by Henry Walters

Location in Museum

Not on view

Accession Number

In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.

58.16

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Hours

  • Wednesday—Sunday: 10 a.m.—5 p.m.
  • Thursday: 1–8 p.m.
  • Monday—Tuesday: Closed

Location

600 N. Charles St.
Baltimore, MD
21201

Phone

410-547-9000

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