19th century French miniature. "Portrait of a... Lot 19

19th century French miniature. "Portrait of a military man. Gouache on vellum. The frame in ebonised wood with gilded carvings is missing. Size: 7 x 5,5 cm; 13,5 x 12,5 cm (frame). Since the Renaissance, miniature portraits were pieces for private contemplation. Considered as jewellery, in the 17th century they became pieces of personal adornment or objects of gift, as they were mounted as jewellery. They were executed in a wide variety of techniques, such as oil on copper, pewter or ivory, gouaches on parchment or card and, from the 18th century, watercolour on ivory. This delicate art was gradually lost from the second half of the 19th century onwards, in parallel with the development of photography. The most common type of work in the 19th century was historicist representations, often set in the preceding century.