Giacomo Franchini, Italian glass cane portrait tie pin

Giacomo Franchini (1827-1897), a rare and unusual Italian glass cane portrait tie pin, circa 1860 and later, set with a miniature portrait of the Italian statesman Camillo Benso, Count of Cavour (1810-1861) made from a single cross section of glass cane, within a glittering border, to a base metal pin with gilt metal stopper, cane 8.3mm diameter, total length 6.7cm, case

Giacomo Franchini (1827-1897) was the son of a Venetian glass maker, who mastered the art of making incredibly intricate and lifelike portraits in the unforgiving medium of millefiori glass, particularly of major figures in Italian reunification, such as the present portrait of Cavour. Partly due to the obsessively detailed nature and small scale of his artistic output, Franchini's mental health deteriorated and he was confined to an asylum from 1863, where he remained for the rest of his life.

Please see Giovanni Sarpellon, 'Miniature Masterpieces. Mosaic Glass 1838-1924', Munich 1995, pp. 70-90, for additional information on on Franchini's life and works.