Banks Medallion collection

The Banks Medallion Collection comprises a Wedgwood & Bentley cameo portrait medallion featuring a profile bust of Joseph Banks modelled in high relief in white jasper on a solid blue jasper body c.1775-80. The portrait of Banks reproduced on the medallion was originally modelled by John Flaxman R.A. (1755-1826), a leading neo-classical sculptor employed by Wedgwood from 1775. Flaxman modelled his portraits in a hard grey-white wax directly onto a glass background, with each portrait in wax substantially larger than the resulting jasper copy to allow for shrinkage during moulding and firing. Due to the limitations of the casting process, the artist would 'undercut', or carve back into the jasper copies to sharpen their details and give a greater impression of depth to the portrait before firing. The condition of the collection is good, with only a few small chips missing from the edge of the medallion. The white jasper portrait is in excellent condition.