KARL ROTHMÜLLER Jugendstil Medusa Brooch

Object Description

A rare and spectacular ‘fin de siècle’ symbolist brooch. Medusa, here symbolizing the ‘Femme Fatale’ of the period, is beautifully portrayed. The powerful protective significance of the Greek Myth has fascinated artists for millennia. This exquisite brooch made by Karl Rothmüller of Munich echoes Edvard Munch’s 1893 expressionist ‘Der Schrei der Natur’. Karl Rothmüller (1860-1930) was Purveyor for the Royal Bavarian Court and one of the most important German goldsmiths of his time.

Documented in: ‘Moderner Schmuck von Karl Rothmüller in München’, Volume 113, Bijoux, Pays Divers XIXe Siècle, A-Z (Library of the Musée des arts décoratifs, Paris).

Object Literature

cf. Munchner Schmuck 1900-1940, Munich National Museum 1990, page 47, catalogue number 42. Schmuck in Deutschland und Osterreich 1895-1914, Ulrike von Hase, 1977, page 255.
Art Nouveau Jewelry, Vivienne Becker, 1985, page 227
Dangerous Beauty: Medusa in Classical Art: The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, v.75, no. 3 (Winter, 2018)

Object Condition

Very good

Object Details