Dactyliotheca

The study of antique cameos and intaglios was highly popular in the eighteenth century. This led to the reproduction, in a kind of plaster, of some of the most famous collections of the time. The Dresden artist Lippert assembled a collection of 3149 casts in three book-shaped containers, which he produced for sale. He named it a dactyliotheca, from the Greek word for a repository of rings and gemstones. This example was acquired in 1792 by the Amsterdam Drawing Academy.

Dactyliotheca

The study of antique cameos and intaglios was highly popular in the eighteenth century. This led to the reproduction, in a kind of plaster, of some of the most famous collections of the time. The Dresden artist Lippert assembled a collection of 3149 casts in three book-shaped containers, which he produced for sale. He named it a dactyliotheca, from the Greek word for a repository of rings and gemstones. This example was acquired in 1792 by the Amsterdam Drawing Academy.