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| Cloisonné | |
|---|---|
| Name | Cloisonné |
| Classification | Decorative arts |
| Materials | Metal, enamel, wire, glass |
| Technique | Cloisonné enameling |
Cloisonné is an ancient decorative technique in which compartments formed by thin metal strips are filled with colored vitreous enamel to create images and patterns. It has been practiced across Eurasia and beyond, appearing in archaeological contexts linked to elites, religious institutions, imperial courts, and workshops associated with major civilizations. Surviving pieces appear in museum collections, royal treasuries, and archaeological sites connected to dynasties, empires, and key cultural exchanges.
The technique appears in archaeological records associated with elites in regions tied to the Achaemenid Empire, Hittites, Scythians, and Saka peoples, with metalwork continuing into contexts relating to the Parthian Empire, Sasanian Empire, and courtly centers such as Constantinople, Byzantium, and Chang'an. Later developments are documented in sources connected to the Tang dynasty, Song dynasty, Yuan dynasty, and Ming dynasty courts, while medieval European examples are cited in relation to the Carolingian Empire, Ottonian dynasty, and churches within the milieu of the Holy Roman Empire. The technique spread along routes associated with the Silk Road, intersecting with exchanges among the Umayyad Caliphate, Abbasid Caliphate, and trading hubs like Samarkand and Merv. Japanese adoption and adaptation are recorded in contexts involving the Heian period, Kamakura period, and workshops patronized by shogunates such as the Ashikaga shogunate and industrializing houses during the Meiji Restoration. Russian imperial collections, including those associated with the Romanov dynasty and workshops in Saint Petersburg, show distinct revivalist phases influenced by figures like Peter the Great and institutions such as the Hermitage Museum. Twentieth-century institutional histories involve museums and collectors including the Victoria and Albert Museum, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the British Museum.
Artisans typically used base metals linked to smithing traditions in centers such as Persia and Byzantium, employing alloys and precious metals found in treasuries of the Ottoman Empire and the Mughal Empire. Wire and strip materials derive from smiths trained within workshops associated with the Guildhall traditions and urban centers like Cairo, Baghdad, and Guangzhou. Enamels are vitreous glasses chemically related to developments studied in laboratories affiliated with institutions such as the Royal Society and universities including Oxford University and Peking University. Techniques reference technologies also used in production contexts tied to the Industrial Revolution and artisan reforms seen during the Arts and Crafts Movement and institutions like the Victoria and Albert Museum. Kiln technologies, firing temperatures, and fluxes reflect practices recorded in manuals from studios in Kyoto, Beijing, and Moscow. Surface finishes and gilding link to metallurgical practices cultivated in workshops patronized by the Medici family, the Habsburg Monarchy, and other princely houses. Modern analytical methods applied by laboratories at institutions like the Smithsonian Institution, the Getty Conservation Institute, and the Courtauld Institute illuminate composition and stratigraphy.
Design motifs range from courtly emblems found in artifacts tied to the Imperial Household Agency (Japan), to religious iconography linked to institutions such as St Peter's Basilica, Tōdai-ji, and Kinkaku-ji. Patterns reflect stylistic vocabularies shared with objects associated with the Ming court, the Ottoman court, and the Tsarist court; motifs echo artistic languages seen in manuscripts from the House of Wisdom era and illustrated works connected to patrons like Kublai Khan and Emperor Xuanzong. Animal and vegetal motifs in panels recall imagery from treasures associated with the Tibetan Plateau, the Indian subcontinent under the Gupta Empire, and steppe contexts linked to Attila and his contemporaries. Secular designs appear in pieces commissioned by dynasties and institutions such as the Soviet Union-era state collections and private collectors like Sammlung collectors and industrial magnates. Iconographic programs often align with liturgical furnishings in churches and temples like Notre-Dame de Paris and Hōryū-ji.
East Asian traditions include enamel work associated with the Ming dynasty and the Qing dynasty, as well as Japanese variants tied to the Edo period and workshops in Kanazawa and Kyoto. Central Asian and Persianate styles occur in artifacts from Samarkand and Isfahan, while Byzantine and Western European iterations appear in objects connected to the Byzantine Empire, the Kingdom of France, and the Kingdom of England. Russian schools produced distinctive revivalist wares linked to firms such as those supplying the Russian Imperial Cabinet and designers connected to Fabergé. Southeast Asian inscriptions and motifs occur in material culture associated with courts like Ayutthaya and Majapahit. North African and Andalusi examples intersect with artifacts tied to Córdoba and the Almoravid dynasty. In the Americas, revival and hybrid forms appear in contexts influenced by collections at institutions like the Smithsonian Institution and patrons linked to Gilded Age collectors.
Small workshops historically supplied courts and religious institutions, including commissions for treasuries of the Vatican and state collections of the British Crown. Industrialization introduced mechanized enameling and standardized materials in factories influenced by developments in cities such as Birmingham, Glasgow, Lyon, and Sèvres, and by entrepreneurs tied to the Industrial Revolution and firms with connections to the Second Industrial Revolution. The late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries saw revivalist production driven by patrons in the Belle Époque and exhibitions like the Exposition Universelle (1889), with outputs entering collections of museums including the National Gallery of Art and the Ashmolean Museum. Workshops associated with designers from the Arts and Crafts Movement and firms connected to the Wiener Werkstätte demonstrate intersections of craft and early industrial capital. Modern mass-produced items are manufactured in regions connected to global supply chains centered in cities such as Shenzhen and industrial zones near Guangzhou.
Conservation strategies draw on protocols developed at institutions like the Getty Conservation Institute, the British Museum, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and require collaboration with specialists from universities such as Harvard University and the Sorbonne. Treatment addresses issues documented in objects from collections linked to the Hermitage Museum and the Victoria and Albert Museum, including enamel loss, metal corrosion, and cracking recorded in case studies from laboratories at the Courtauld Institute and conservation departments at the Smithsonian Institution. Preventive care follows guidelines promulgated by organizations like the International Council of Museums and standards used in conservation programs at the National Trust and national archives such as those of France and Japan. Exhibition and storage consider environmental controls used by institutions like the Louvre and the National Palace Museum.
Category:Enamelwork