Institute at Brown for Environment and Society

Cecilia Seilern und Aspang mostly researches early modern gems and is interested in their relationship as a natural product which gets distorted into a highly prized commodity. Therein she looks at valuation amongst different communities, practices of imitation and the production of knowledge on nature through alchemy, as well as the resulting use of gems in jewelry and objects of art. Cecilia aims to bridge design, science and nature in the context of the 16th, 17th and 18th century.