18. Gold and Enamel Maltese Crosses Cane-Ca. 1850-Very large and heavy (over 2 ½ ounces) high karat yellow gold knob consisting of a straight and gently tapering hexagonal body and a slightly splaying top en-suite. The body is lavishly ornamented with three repeating filigree panels of three, vertically arranged and blue and white enameled Maltese crosses in white enamel framings alternating with three similar other panels, yet with engraved central boards. The top overtakes the design of the body and bundles it in a beautiful, radiating scheme centered by a daisy-like flower. The design and manufacturing techniques of the knob are in the taste of Castellani and speak for a Neapolitan origin. The knob is complimented with a superbly figured snake wood shaft and a long horn ferrule. This cane has a striking visual presence and, with the allure of a staff, is above magnificent. It was probably made to a special order for a wealthy person with obvious links to the legendary Maltese Knights. After more than one and a half century of age, it still reflects the considerable virtuosity of its maker and the great taste of refinement of its first owner. Judging from its condition, it was used at rare occasions and possibly spent its entire life in a protective cabinet. This cane warrants further investigation and academic research can be very rewarding. -H. 1 ¾” x 3 ¼”, O.L. 43”-The “Sovereign Military and Hospitaller Order of St. John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta” is one of the few Orders created in the Middle Ages and still active today. It is also the only one that is at the same time religious and sovereign. This is due to the fact that most of the other Orders of chivalry lacked the hospitable function which characterizes the Order of Malta, so they disappeared as soon as the military purposes that represented the reasons for their existence ceased.-Filigree jewelry is totally hand- crafted, calling for hours of painstaking concentration on the part of its maker. The knowledge behind these meticulous creations is passed down from generation to generation and remains a closely guarded secret kept in the hands of lapidary master families. -Setting up a workshop in 1814, Fortunato Pio Castellani got into his stride in the 1830s when, dismayed at the dreariness of current jewelry design, he started to base his creations on the Greek, Etruscan and Roman pieces being unearthed at archaeological sites. The Castellani also sponsored excavations and their premises bulged with collections of vases, jewelry and bronzes. Many of these are now in the British Museum. The firm was continued with equal success by Fortunato Rio’s sons, Alessandro (1823-83) and Augusto (1829-1914), closing after the death of Augusto’s son Alfredo in 1930. In the 1860s a branch was set up in London with Carlo Giuliano as manager, later famous as a jeweler in his own right. Royalty and the artistic community were equally beguiled, the beautifully worked jewelry conforming to the principles of the Aesthetic Movement in its disdain of massed gemstones or mass production. -For some notes on snake wood refer to #8 in this catalog.