Cameo is a general name for all gems cut in relief, in contradistinction to those hollowed out, or intaglios. More particularly, a cameo is a gem composed of several different-coloured layers having a subject in relief cut upon one or more of the upper layers, an under layer of a different colour forming the ground. Eor this purpose the ancients used the onyx, sardonyx, agate, etc. The shells of various molluscs are now much used for making cameos; and they are also imitated on glass and other materials. Research Cameo
Frederic Sewards Trueman (Freddy Trueman) was an English cricketer. He was born in 1931 at Stainton, Yorkshire and died in 2006. After serving an apprenticeship as a bricklayer, he became a professional cricketer, playing for Yorkshire from 1949 until 1968, and for England in 67 test matches between 1952 and 1965 and was the first bowler to take 300 test wickets. On three occasions he took ten wickets in a match, and during his first-class career he took 2304 wickets and made three centuries. After retiring from playing cricket he worked as a cricketwriter and broadcaster where his down-to-earth approach and sharp tongue earned him notoriety. Freddy Trueman also made a cameo appearance in an episode of the BBC comedy 'Dad's Army' as a cricketer brought in by the wardens in a friendly match against the Home Guard. Research Freddy Trueman
Basil Rathbone (real name Philip St John Basil Rathbone) was a South African born English actor. He was born in 1892 at Johannesburg and died in 1967 of a heartattack. He appeared as the character 'Sherlock Holmes' in fourteen 'Sherlock Holmes' films, and played a comedycameo role in the 1943 film 'Crazy House'. Research Basil Rathbone
Walter Matthau is an American actor. He was born in 1920 at New York as Walter Matuschanskavasky, a name he used for his cameo appearance in the 1974 film 'Earthquake'. He made his Broadway debut in 1948 as understudy for the role of an 85-year old bishop in 'Anne of the Thousand Days'. A film career followed rave reviews of his role in 1955 in the play ' Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?'. Research Walter Matthau
Cheryl Tiegs is an American actress and former supermodel. She was born in 1947 at Minnesota. She has appeared in varios cameo roles in television programmes and played 'Lilly' in the 2003 film 'The Brown Bunny'. Research Cheryl Tiegs
Heidi Klum is a German model and actress. She was born in 1973 at Bergisch-Gladbach. As well as a few acting roles, she has also made numerous cameo appearances in the 1990's television series 'Spin City'. Research Heidi Klum
Gems, or precious stones, are sometimes found crystallized in regular shapes and with a natural polish, more commonly they are of irregular shapes and with a rough coat.
The term gem often denotes more particularly a stone that is cut, polished, or engraved, and it also includes pearls and various artificial productions.
The first and most valuable class of gems includes diamonds, emeralds, rubies, sapphires, and a few others; the second class includes the amethyst, topaz, garnet, etc;
while agate, lapis-lazuli, cornelian, etc, though much used for ornament, can scarcely be called gems.
The fabrication of artificial gems became an important industrial art during the 19th century. The base of one class of imitations is a peculiar kind of glass of considerable hardness, brilliancy and refractive power called paste or strass, which is distinguished from ordinary glass by the presence of 50 per cent of oxide of lead among its constituents. When the strass is obtained very pure it is melted and mixed with substances having a metallic base, generally oxides, which communicate to the mass the most varied colours.
Another class, called semi-stones or doublets, are made by affixing thin slices of real gem to an under part of strass by means of an invisiblecement. In some cases an imitation is made by setting uncoloured strass or quartz in jewelry with some coloured 'foil' at the back of it.
At the end of the 19th century attempts were made with a fair measure of success to manufacture true gems by artificial processes. The French chemists Becquerel, Ebelman, Gaudin, Despretz, and others did much in this direction.
In 1858 Deville and Caron communicated to the Academy of Sciences, Paris, a process for the production of a number of gems of the corundum class, such as rubies, sapphires, etc. The process essentially consisted in exposing the fluoride of aluminium, together with a little charcoal and boracic acid, in a plumbagocrucible protected from the action of the air, to a white heat for about an hour. Many experiments with a view to producing diamonds artificially have also been made. From hydrocarbons, subjected to a very intense heat and enormous pressure, minute crystals, differing from natural diamonds in no respect save brilliancy, have been produced. Artificial diamonds are now widely used in industry.
In art and archaeology the term gem is usually applied to a precious stone cut or engraved in ornamental designs, or with inscriptions. Stones on which the design is raised above the general surface are called cameos; those having the design sunk below the surface are called intaglios. Early specimens of cut gems are seen in the scarabaei or beetle-shaped signets worn in rings by the ancient Egyptians. Among the Greeks, Etruscans, and Romans gem-sculpture held a high place, reaching its highest point under Augustus. Modern gem-engraving dates from the beginning of the 15th century, the chief seats of the art being Italy and Germany. Rome becoming the headquarters of the seal-engraving art. The traditional tools of the engraver consist of a lathe, and a series of little rods with heads of different shapes, all of which can be adjusted to the lathe. The axis of the lathe is pierced at the centre with an orifice, into which the tools for cutting the stone are firmly fixed by means of a screw. The engraver wets the extremity of the mounted rod with diamond dust made into a paste with oil (traditionally olive oil), and as the wheel is in motion he applies the stone, firmly cemented to a piece of reed, to the revolving tool. The diamond dust enables the tool to cut into the stone with ease. As the design is frequently very elaborate and of the greatest delicacy, the tools are necessarily multiform. The stones used for cameo-cutting often exhibit layers of different colours, so that the raised design has a tint distinct from the ground. Intaglios are very often executed in transparent stones, and the subjects treated in this manner are more limited in number. They are chiefly such as seals, devices, coats of arms, etc. Research Gems
Abbreviations
Research Cameo
