Portrait of a Young Man
Medium
Enamel
Dimensions
Oval, 1 3/4 x 1 3/8 in. (45 x 36 mm)
Classification
Miniatures
Department
European Paintings
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Bequest of Catherine D. Wentworth, 1948
Accession Number
48.187.495
Tags
Art Historical Context
Behold the delicate *Portrait of a Young Man* by Christian Friedrich Zincke a master enamel painter of the 18th century. tiny oval miniature, measuring just 1¾ x 1⅜ inches (45 x 36 mm), captures the refined features of its unidentified subject with astonishing precision. Crafted in enamel—a vitreous medium fired onto metal, often copper or gold—Zcke's work exemplifies the jewel-like quality of portrait miniatures, prized by European aristocracy for their portability and intimacy. Zincke, born in Dresden around 1680 and active in London by the 1720s, trained under court enamellers and became a...