C1760 Chelsea Seal of Commedia Dell’Arte Harlequin Figure in Blackface
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Directory: Antiques: Decorative Art: Jewelry: Pre 1800: Item # 1449783
Directory: Antiques: Decorative Art: Jewelry: Pre 1800: Item # 1449783
Moylan-Smelkinson/The Spare Room
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P.O. Box 4684
Baltimore, Maryland 21212
tel. 410-435-3738
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View Seller Profile
P.O. Box 4684
Baltimore, Maryland 21212
tel. 410-435-3738
Guest Book
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C 1760 Rare Chelsea seal of a harlequin boy in black face mask with a metal ring at the top. The colors are magnificent. The seal evokes the Commedia dell'Arte, an early form of popular comedic masked theater originating in Italy and popular in Europe from the 16th to the 18th century. The harlequin alone is rare; a harlequin in blackface, rarer still. Blackface was a familiar theatrical device in Europe which made its way to the American colonies and blackface characters appeared on the stages of America's earliest legitimate theaters well before the first blackface minstrel appeared in song and dance on stage. The original harlequin portrays a character from the Commedia dell’Arte, a peasant trickster who sought to gain the attention of his love interest Columbine. This harlequin "toy", as they were called, was a precursor to 19th and 20th-century minstrel shows. This is one way artists pushed the boundaries, and with this unusual figure, the boundaries were clearly pushed to the limit.
C 1760 Rare Chelsea seal of a harlequin boy in black face mask with a metal ring at the top. The colors are magnificent. The seal evokes the Commedia dell'Arte, an early form of popular comedic masked theater originating in Italy and popular in Europe from the 16th to the 18th century. The harlequin alone is rare; a harlequin in blackface, rarer still. Blackface was a familiar theatrical device in Europe which made its way to the American colonies and blackface characters appeared on the stages of America's earliest legitimate theaters well before the first blackface minstrel appeared in song and dance on stage. The original harlequin portrays a character from the Commedia dell’Arte, a peasant trickster who sought to gain the attention of his love interest Columbine. This harlequin "toy", as they were called, was a precursor to 19th and 20th-century minstrel shows. This is one way artists pushed the boundaries, and with this unusual figure, the boundaries were clearly pushed to the limit.
