Catalog: Estate Jewelry (1615)

A very nice pair of double-sided 14K yellow gold cufflinks, the faces featuring discs of mother-of-pearl surrounded by opaque white enameled borders and centered with small pearls set in platinum. The mother-of-pearl is very lustrous with nice overtones of green and rose. The white enamel borders are punctuated with small gold dots to relieve the all-white surfaces. These cufflinks would look especially good on a dark shirt. The cufflinks are unmarked, but are in a style typical of the better Newark jewelers at the beginning of the 20th century. Tested and guaranteed 14K gold.

Origin: America, ca. 1910. Condition: excellent, no enamel damage, all original. Size: faces, 5/8” diameter. Weight: 8.5 grams.

An elegant heavy gold bracelet comprised of linked chains decorated with three-leaf clovers. In Victorian flower symbology, clover leaves, regardless of their number signified good luck, but they also held the meaning “think of me.” Kauffer was the primary jeweler of the Ecole de Nancy, France’s most important group of Art Nouveau artisans. He exhibited at the Louvre during his lifetime. Unlike the more florid Art Nouveau designs by Parisian jewelers, Kauffer’s designs tended to be more linear and graphic. The bracelet’s clasp is stamped with the 18K gold marks used outside Paris until 1919, with Kauffer’s maker’s mark, and also with Kauffer’s signature.

• Origin: France, ca 1910
• Condition: excellent
• Dimensions: 7-1/2” long.
• Weight: 32.7 grams.

A delightful Japanese silver and patinated steel short watch fob suspending a heart shaped locket decorated with gold and silver shakudo style inlay. One side of the locket is decorated with a beautifully worked iris and foliage, while the other side has a pair of inlaid swallows. The interior is engraved, either with the maker’s name or with an affectionate inscription. This is a most unusual adaptation of the Western imagery of the heart as a love token with the late 19th century Japanese aesthetic.

Origin: Japan, ca. 1900. Condition: excellent, all original, patination intact. Size: overall, 5-5/8” long; heart, 11/16” x 21/32”. Weight: 17.5 grams.

Of the thousands of cufflinks we’ve handled over the years, this is the first pair of Art Nouveau bean-back cufflinks we’ve ever seen that have a matching design worked on both the primary face and the bean back. The 14K yellow gold links are worked with a repousse design of a maiden wearing an ornate headdress filled with the scrolls and whiplash curves typical of Art Nouveau design. The connectors are hallmarked by Krementz and are marked “14K”.

Origin: America, ca. 1900. Condition: excellent, all original, sharp details. Size: large faces, 3/4” x 9/16; small faces, 1/2” x 3/8”. Weight: 5.2 grams.

An elegant 14K gold, Mississippi River pearl and blue sapphire floral pendant in the Art Nouveau taste suspended from a split chain. The flower petals are formed from pearls and center a blue sapphire of fine, intense color. The design is enclosed in a gold frame that resembles the shape of a pretzel! The pendant was originally a brooch and was expertly converted to a pendant by our jeweler. Tested and guaranteed 14K.

• America, ca. 1900.
Condition: excellent.
• Dimensions: pendant, 1" x 5/8"; overall necklace length, 18-7/8".
• Weight: 4.8 grams.
• Approximate Sapphire Weight: .15 carat.

14K gold Art Nouveau pendant necklace featuring a flower set with a blue sapphire center and a seed pearl bud enclosed within a heart-shaped frame of foliage. The gold has a slightly greenish cast and is engraved to suggest the velvety leaves. Originally a brooch, the pendant now hangs on a 14K gold split chain as an elegant necklace. Tested and guaranteed 14K.

• Origin: Continental Europe, ca. 1900
• Condition: excellent.
• Dimensions: pendant, 1" x 1"; necklace length, 18-3/4".
• Weight: 4.2 grams.
• Approximate Total Sapphire Weight: .06 carat.

A delightful pair of Victorian 10K yellow gold cufflinks, each in the form of a canoe. The bow of each is set with a 4-pt old mine cut diamond (I1 clarity/K color). The canoes are fully three-dimensional and each has three seats in the interior. Marked "10K".

Origin: America, ca. 1890. Condition: excellent. Size: 3/4" x 1/4". Weight: 5.0 grams. Approximate Total Diamond Weight: .08 carat.

A very handsome pair of double-faced late Victorian cufflinks by Newark jeweler Bippart, Griscomb & Osborn. The faces are worked in 14K yellow gold and are decorated with engine-turned engraving in several motifs. The front face on each cufflink is set with a high-domed cabochon blue sapphire. The back faces match the engraved decoration of the fronts. The connectors are hallmarked for Bippart, Griscomb and Osborn, one of the leading Newark jewelers at the turn of the century.

Origin: America, ca. 1900. Condition: excellent, all original. Size: 9/16” diameter. Weight: 11.7 grams. Approximate Total Gemstone Weight: 1.1 carats.

A fine late Victorian 14K yellow gold animal pin in the form of an owl sitting on a branch. The details of the feathers and tree bark are beautifully rendered. The eyes are set with two small garnet cabochons. The back retains the original pinstem and clasp. The back is stamped "14K" and also has an unidentified maker's mark. This piece could be worn as a pin or suspended from a chain as a pendant.

Origin: America, ca. 1900. Condition: excellent; all original; sharp detail. Dimensions: 1-1/4" x 5/8". Weight: 7.1 gr.

A handsome pair of Victorian 14K yellow gold double-sided cufflinks, the faces set with cabochon agates. The variety of agate is called “landscape agate” because the colors and markings resemble painted landscapes. These particular stones suggest colorful sunsets behind wooded landscapes. The bezel settings are finished with fine millegraining. The connectors are marked 14K and have an unknown American maker’s mark.

Origin: America, ca. 1890. Condition: excellent. Size: 5/8” x 9/16”. Weight: 10.4 grams.

A classic pair of Victorian 14K yellow gold double-sided cufflinks, the faces collet-set with oval amethyst cabochons. The amethysts have strong, even color and superb clarity. The faces are marked “14K.”

Origin: America, ca. 1900. Condition: excellent. Dimensions: 9/16” x 7/16”. Weight: 8.3 gr. Approximate Total Gemstone Weight: amethyst, 23.24 cts.

A pair of ducks takes flight from the lakeside marsh in this 18K yellow gold and diamond locket by renowned Swiss jewelers Huguenin Frères. The quality of the design and workmanship are astounding. The old European cut diamond (I/VS2) is set in platinum collet to enhance the color. Huguenin Frères was one of the leading makers of fine pocketwatch cases, and in 1899 expanded their range to include sporting decorations and other jewelry. It’s likely that a locket of this type was made for a markswoman or female hunter of some distinction. The locket retains its original interior frames and old silk liners. The front is signed by the maker.

• Origin: Switzerland, ca. 1900.
• Condition: excellent; sharp details; no monogram.
• Dimensions: 1 9/32” diameter.
• Weight: 13.2 grams.M/il>
• Approximate Diamond Weight: .10 carat.

A very fine 14K rose gold brooch mounted with a Scottish Terrier carved from banded agate. The dog's head is beautifully rendered, using the stone's natural banded coloring to represent the dark colored muzzle and ears that contrast with the brighter carnelian of the fur. The eyes are represented by small round cut demantoid garnets set in a manner that nearly completely hides the gold collets holding the stones. The workmanship of the carving is first-rate. The setting is rather simple an does not detract from the beauty of the hardstone carving.

Faberge was a leading creator of hardstone carvings, and used carvings created in his own workshops as the shops of others. In Paris, Cartier was determined to compete with Faberge and also produced hardstone carvings. The Cartier versions, however, tended to be a little less realistic and rarely relied on the natural color variations of the stone material. The coloring technique strongly suggests that this carving is the product of a Russian workshop contemporary with Faberge, and possibly that of the master himself.

There appears to be a rubbed-out hallmark on the back side. This is occasionally seen in Russian pieces that had their marks obliterated shortly after the Revolution as their owners tried to smuggle jewels out of the country. Tested and guaranteed to be 56 zlotniks (slightly purer than 14K).

Origin: Russia, ca. 1905. Condition: excellent, all original. Size: 2-9/16" x 1-1/16". Weight: 15.3 grams. Approximate Total Demantoid Weight: .1 ct.

A wonderful late Victorian 14K yellow gold animal pin in the form of an English bulldog. The details are finely worked right down to the studded dog collar. The back is marked 14K and retains the original pinstem and clasp. A small folding bail could easily be added for wear as a pendant.

Origin: America, ca. 1900. Condition: excellent; all original; sharp detail. Dimensions: 7/8" x 11/16". Weight: 6.2 gr.

A lovely 18K gold bracelet in the Louis XVI style, the links fashioned as floral and foliate wreaths alternately centered with old European cut diamonds and round cut rubies. The pierced design lends a light appearance despite the bracelet’s substantial weight. The clasp is stamped with French 18K gold marks.

• Origin: France, ca. 1900
• Condition: excellent, all original
• Dimensions: 7/16” wide; 7-1/2” long
• Weight: 29.1 grams
• Approximate Total Gemstone Weight: diamond, .24 carat; ruby, .44 carat

A delightful Art Nouveau 18K yellow gold slide locket, the cover ornately decorated with a rooster crowing at a rose cut diamond sun. The scene is completed with farm implements in the foreground and a view of wheat field in the distance. The rooster is, of course, a national symbol of France. Though most slide lockets were made in France, this example does not have French hallmarks. Tested and guaranteed 18K.

Ca. 1900. Condition: excellent; sharp detail. Size: 1-1/8” x 1-1/4” (excluding bale and jump ring). Weight: 13.3 grams. Approximate Total Diamond Weight: .15 carat.

A classic pave pearl puffed heart pendant and brooch worked in 10K yellow gold. The back retains the original findings including a watch hook. Marked with Larter’s hallmark and “14K.”

• Origin: America, ca. 1900
• Condition: excellent
• Dimensions: 13/16” x 7/8” (excluding bail)
• Weight: 6.3 grams

French Art Nouveau 18K gold and sapphire cufflinks, the triangular faces pierced in a decoration of stylized flowers and set at the centers with cabochon blue sapphires. The gold surface has a very handsome matte finish that allows the sapphires to shine. The connectors are stamped with French 18K marks and an unidentified maker's mark (SAS).

• France, ca 1895.
• Excellent condition; sharp detail.
• 5/8" x 5/8".
• 7.3 grams.
• Approximate Total Sapphire Weight: 1.04 carat.