Carved Jasper Toad together with Matching Rough Jasper Specimen by Gerd Dreher


Idar-Oberstein, Germany Carved from a single piece of red and green jasper, this realistic rendering of a toad is a testament to the genius of Dreher's technique and vision. The reptile is carved from the red portion of the jasper while the green portions are used to depict an autumnal leaf on a rocky outcropping. Subtle variations in his skin tone are rendered through the light grey mottling or banding in the red jasper itself. The highest quality lapidary work is seen in the texturing of his skin and feet. The inset eyes are formed of agate as well, inscribed with monogram signature GD for Gerd Dreher. Accompanied by a sample of rough jasper with polished face showing the distinct color banding from which the toad was carved. Length of toad 4in (10.2cm); length of jasper specimen 2 3/4in (7cm) (2)
|Provenance: Purchased from Bonhams & Butterfields, Los Angeles, Natural History, June 22, 2008, Sale 16089, Lot 4265. Gerd DreherThe exquisitely detailed animal carvings of Gerd Dreher make his works among the most sought-after masterpieces of the lapidary arts. Born in 1943 in Idar-Oberstein, Gerd was a fourth generation animal figure carver. Dreher's family has been involved in the art of engraving and carving gemstones for nearly two hundred years. A long-established family tradition of producing hardstone and gem animal carvings was begun in the 19th Century and by the early 1900s their name was synonymous with that of the jeweler, Carl Fabergé. The Russian master, on his frequent trips to Idar, would provide plaster models of whimsical animal carvings, which the Dreher family would create out of jasper, agate and jade. Fabergé then sold them in his famed salons in St. Petersburg, Moscow and London. Gerd was a keenly observant naturalist who maintained a massive library of videotapes of animals in motion. His devotion to realism in muscle and animation is what sets his carvings apart. In 2004 a major retrospective exhibition of 60 works entitled The Gem Carvings of Gerd Dreher: A Fabergé Legacy, was held at the Houston Museum of Natural Science. In the words of Joel Bartsch, Curator of Gems and Minerals for the Museum, "Dreher's ability to breathe life into stone has made him one of the most famous practitioners of the craft in the world today. His work is a marriage of art and science."