An Italian micromosaic panel, Rome, late 18th century, attributed to Giacomo Raffaelli

The subject of this panel is inspired by ancient mosaics, namely a floor depicting a basket of flowers in the Pio Clementino Museum of Vatican (inv. no. MC0402). The celebrated Roman mosaic, Doves of Pliny, excavated from Hadrian's villa in Tivoli in 1737, is a recurrent motif in 19th century mosaics and it actually proved to be a very popular depiction to collect by Grand Tourists as a souvenir from their travel through the city of Rome. An obvious symbol of love as the spring of life, doves, together with the basket of flowers, are meticulously executed: the light effects and contrasting vibrant colours against the Belgian black marble top create an enchanting trompe l’oeil.