Catalog: Estate Jewelry: Cufflinks and Accessories: Gold (428)

A rare and outstanding six-piece dress set in 14K yellow gold set with cat’s eye chrysoberyls by Larter for A. Sulka & Co. The gemstones are very dramatic and exhibit superior chatoyancy—the cat’s eye effect displayed when the stones are moved in light. Cat’s eye comes in a variety of colors, but the choice of this dark greenish-grayish black with the white eye is perfect for dress wear. The set comprises a pair of double-faced cufflinks and four shirt studs. Each piece is marked with Larter’s 14K stamp. The set is presented in its original fitted case from A. Sulka & Co., one of the most exclusive men’s clothing boutiques of the 20th century. The box can be dated between 1946 and 1973, the only years in which Sulka had a location in Palm Beach.

• Origin: America, ca. 1950.
• Dimensions: cufflink faces, 1/2” diameter; stud faces, 5/16” diameter.
• Weight: 13.3 grams.
• Approximate Total Gemstone Weight: 53.48 carats.
• Condition: excellent; all original; excellent box.

Handsome pair of vintage 14K yellow gold cufflinks, the elongated diamond-shaped faces set with cabocochon-cut blue sapphires. The stones have excellent, bright color. The faces are lightly textured in a starburst pattern emanating from the sapphires toward the faceted edges. The fronts are attached with solid connectors to the toggle backs. The connectors are marked "585" for 14K.

Origin: Continental Europe, ca. 1950.

Condition: excellent, all original.

Size: 5/8" x 7/8".

Weight: 5.0 grams.

Approximate Total Gemstone Weight: .62 carat.

A handsome pair of heavy 18K yellow gold cufflinks, the round faces featuring a textured finish accented with twisted rope borders. Each face is centered with a strongly-colored blue sapphire. The backs are stamped with French 18K marks.

Origin: France, ca. 1950.

Condition: excellent.

Dimensions: 5/8" diameter.

Weight: 11.2 grams

Approximate Total Gemstone Weight: .52 carat.

A nice pair of 18K yellow gold cufflinks in the stirrup (”étrier”) style popularized by Cartier in the late Art Deco period. The cufflinks are formed as a sharply arched pierced flat band. The hinged closure is decorated with engraved concentric circles at each end. The closure is hidden inside the cuff when the cufflinks are being worn. Each cufflink is fully stamped with French 18K gold hallmarks and with an unidentified master goldsmith’s mark.

Origin: France, ca. 1950. Condition: excellent. Size: 31/32” x 13/16”. Weight: 9.8 grams.

A handsome, heavy pair of 18K yellow gold and onyx cufflinks, each fashioned as two spheres joined by chain-like connectors. The design is a play on positive/negative space. The larger spheres are constructed in gold decorated with concentric rings and inset at the equator with a recessed band of black onyx. The smaller spheres are the opposite—onyx spheres inset with a slightly protruding band of gold at the equator. The gold mountings on the onyx spheres and the middle of each connector are decorated with concentric rings to echo the larger spheres. Altogether, this is an understated, but very sophisticated design. Each cufflink is fully stamped with French hallmarks for 18K gold and with a master goldsmith’s mark.

Origin: France, ca. 1950. Size: large spheres, 1/2" diameter; small spheres, 11/32” diameter. Weight: 13.7 grams.

An extremely heavy pair of 14K yellow gold double-faced cufflinks made by Louis Tamis & Sons and retailed by Tiffany & Co. The round faces are simply decorated with parallel ribbed surfaces. The faces are joined by solid hinged connectors. The cufflinks are very heavy and have a classic, masculine appeal. Tamis was one of New York’s most important goldsmiths and supplied goods to Tiffany, Cartier and Verdura among others. Each cufflink is marked “14K” and has Tamis’ maker’s mark and Tiffany’s retailer mark.

Origin: America, ca. 1950. Condition: excellent. Size: 9/16” diameter. Weight: 21.6 grams.

An extremely rare pair of 18K yellow gold and citrine cufflinks by the mid-century Brazilian jewelry designers Roberto and Haroldo Burle Marx. The Burle Marx brothers were particularly know for their use of colored gemstones fashioned in the "forma livre" (free-form) style. Haroldo invented the technique of carving and tumbling forma livre stones in 1948, and the style of the swivel mechanism suggests that the cufflinks are relatively early—probably around 1955. The gold sunburst setting of these cufflinks shows the design hand of Haroldo's older brother, Roberto. The citrines have a deep honey color accented beautiful by the shades created from the carving. The backs are fully marked with Burle Marx's hallmark and marks for 18K.

Marx worked in his native Brazil, and his only international boutique was at the Watergate Hotel in Washington, DC. He was chosen by the Brazilian government to create gifts for visiting heads of state and their wives, including Empress Nagako of Japan, Empress Farah Diba of Iran, Queen Margarethe of Denmark and Prime Minister Indira Gandhi of India. In Hollywood circles, he was a favored jeweler of Merle Oberon and Natalie Wood.

Origin: Brazil, ca. 1955. Condition: excellent. Dimensions: faces, 7/8" diameter. Weight: 12.8 gr. Estimated Gemstone Weight: 5.8 cts.

A nice 1950's 14K yellow gold tie bar set with rectangular step-cut synthetic rubies. The tie bar is quite short, dating it to the mid-century period when ties were very narrow. Narrow ties are once again in fashion, so this is still the perfect gentleman's accessory. Marked "14K".

Origin: America, ca. 1955. Excellent condition. Size: 1-1/4" long. Weight: 3.4 grams.

A handsome pair of vintage 14K yellow gold cufflinks, the faces fashioned as large round discs enhanced with concentric rings set off to one side. Though these cufflinks date to the early 1950s, the design is very much in the Art Deco taste. The faces are connected to toggle backs. Each cufflink is marked "14K."

Origin: America, ca. 1950. Condition: excellent. Size: faces, 3/4" diameter. Weight: 13.8 grams.

An interesting and attractive pair of 18K yellow gold cufflinks, the faces fashioned as reeded batons. The batons have a concealed spring-loaded mechanism that attaches to swivel hinges on the pair of struts that hold the batons in place. We've never before seen this particular mechanism. The cufflinks are stamped with French 18K marks and also with the mark of the Parisian jeweler Gaétan de Percin. De Percin opened his studio in 1938 and executed designs for Hermès, Dior, Chanel, Tiffany and Van Cleef & Arpels.

Origin: France, ca. 1950. Condition: ecellent; all original. Dimensions: batons, 3/4 in. long. Weight: 8.5 grams.

A handsome pair of vintage 14K yellow gold double-sided cufflinks by Larter. The square faces have slightly rounded edges and feature almandite garnet cabochons. The garnets have strong red coloring without too much of the brown overtones that can make garnets dark. The connectors are marked with Larter’s hallmark and “14K”.

Origin: America, ca. 1950. Condition: excellent. Size: 9/16” x 9/16”. Weight: 8.5 grams. Approximate Total Gemstone Weight: 4.04 cts.

A heavy pair of mid-century 14K yellow gold dome cufflinks in a Florentine finish, each centering a gypsy-set round brilliant cut citrine. The gemstones are medium slightly brownish orangy-yellow in color and constrast nicely with the surrounding gold. The toggle backs are marked “14K”.

Origin: America, ca. 1960. Condition: excellent. Size: 5/8” diameter; 3/8” deep. Weight: 14.0 grams. Approximate Total Gemstone Weight: 2.0 carats.

A classic pair of 18K yellow gold stirrups in the “stirrup” style popularized by Cartier. The surfaces are decorated with engraved parallel lines. This type of decoration, combined with the unusually angular shape, gives this pair of cufflinks a very modernist feel. The cufflinks are fully stamped with French 18K gold hallmarks.

Origin: France, ca. 1970. Condition: excellent. Size: 3/4" deep; 1/4" wide. Weight: 8.3 gr.

A nice, heavy pair of figural 14K yellow gold cufflinks, each of the faces designed as a golf bag with a selection of clubs. The cufflinks are finished with nice details such as the grooves on the irons and the textured surface of the bags. The faces are connected to an older style of toggle backs. The backs are stamped 14K.

Origin: America, ca. 1955. Condition: excellent, sharp detail. Dimensions: faces, 15/16” long. Weight: 9.2 gr.

A very heavy pair of 18K yellow gold stirrup (étrier) cufflinks retailed by famed New York jeweler Olga Tritt. Stirrup (étrier) cufflinks were popularized by Cartier in the 1940s and have appeared in many variations since. This pair is unusual because of the gold mesh sides and the unusual decorative shape of the crossbar. The cufflinks are marked with indistinct French master goldsmith’s marks. We have had an identical pair once before, in their original fitted Olga Tritt box. As a French émigré, Tritt manufactured her own line of jewelry and retailed high-quality French jewelry at her Park Avenue boutique.

Origin: France, ca. 1950. Condition: excellent, all original. Dimensions: 21 x 24 mm (13/16 x 31/32 in). Weight: 17.9 gr.

A fine pair of vintage 18K yellow gold cufflinks in the "stirrup" style popularized by Cartier in the late 1940s. The cufflinks are constructed from a solid bar, finished at each end with interlocking arches. By pulling on the ends, the arches can be unfolded for each in putting the cufflinks through the cuff holes. Then, a simple flip up causes the arches to hold the fabric tightly together. Cufflinks of the sort are seen in a number of variations, but this is a particularly handsome pair. The bars are marked with French 18K gold hallmarks, and also with an unidentified maker's mark "GP".

Origin: France, ca. 1955. Condition: excellent, all original. Size: faces, 3/4" x 9/16". Weight: 11.5 grams.

A colorful, handsome pair of 14K yellow gold cufflinks, the faces bezel-set with carnelian and green chalcedony oval cabochons. The color contrast is very striking. Interestingly, they could be worn so either the red or green sides face out on the cuff, or with one cuff showing red and the other green. Tested and guaranteed 14K.

Origin: America, ca. 1950. Condition: excellent. Dimensions: faces, 9/16” x 7/16”. Weight: 6.1 gr. Approximate Total Gemstone Weight: carnelian, 8.14 cts.; chalcedony, 8.14 cts.

An outstanding pair of 18K yellow gold mesh cufflinks, the faces set with large amethysts cut into sugarloaf cabochons. Mesh cufflinks, intended to wrap around the outside edge of the cuff were quite popular in the 1950s and it was a style favored by Meister—one of Switzerland’s most exclusive jewelers. The amethysts are of very fine quality, graded as dark vivid Purple in color (P7/6) with eye-clean clarity and excellent symmetry and polish. The faces are backed by snap mechanisms that hold the cufflinks in place. The mesh is constructed of very fine links for a smooth, flexible feel. Each cufflink is marked “Meister” and “EM 750”.

Origin: Switzerland, ca. 1955. Condition: excellent. Size: faces, 11 x 14 mm. Weight: 24.29 grams. Approximate Total Gemstone Weight: 27.72 cts.