A Gold-Mounted Tortoiseshell and Enamel Snuff Box, Antoine Tardiveau, Paris, 1809-1819, the Micromosaic by Domenico Moglia, Rome, early 19th Century

Domenico Moglia (c. 1780-1862) was a sought-after mosaicist recorded as working in both Russia and the Vatican. It was during his time working at the Vatican that he undertook one of his most significant projects: a copy of the portrait by Sir Thomas Lawrence, commissioned by Pope Pius VII to be presented to the future King. Works by Moglia were also displayed at the Great Exhibition held in London in 1851; these are now part of the Gilbert Collection at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London. The composition of the present plaque is traditionally attributed to the animal painter Johann Wenzel Peter (1745-1829), whose own work is possibly inspired by a similar painting of a dog and a cat executed by David de Coninck (1644-1687) a century earlier (Christie's London, 6 July 2011, lot 112) (J. H. Gabriel, Micromosaics, Private Collections, New York 2016, p.153). A further mosaic with a pastoral scene, somewhat comparable to the present plaque – Deer Hunt – was presented as a gift from President Gronchi of Italy to President Eisenhower in 1956. Domenico Moglia’s son, Luigi Moglia, was also a prominent mosaicist, winning a gold medal at the London Great Exhibition (J. H. Gabriel, Micromosaics, The Gilbert Collection, London 2000, p. 286).