A Return to the Grand Tour: Micromosaic Jewels from the Collection of Elizabeth Locke

Micromosaics arrived at their height of pictorial perfection from the late 18th to the mid 19th centuries. These exquisitely crafted plaques, which contain up to 1,400 delicately shaded tiles of glass per square inch, were sold to travelers on their Grand Tour through Italy. Made into jewelry, boxes, and paper weights and sold as easily carried mementoes, micromosaics passed out of fashion toward the end of the 19th century and are now a lost art. This exhibition features 92 brilliant examples from the private collection of Elizabeth Locke.

This exhibition is sponsored by the Gibbes Museum Women's Council, Croghan's Jewel Box, Lou Hammond Group and Jill and Richard Almeida.

This exhibition is organized by the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Richmond.