Catalog: Estate Jewelry (1608)

Very nice Victorian shakudo pin featuring a wonderful scene of Mt. Fuji. The foreground shows two quail, worked in gold, foraging amidst incredibly detailed wildflowers. The snow on the peak of Mt. Fuji is picked out in silver. The entire pin is beautifully patinated. After the samurai system in Japan ended, highly skilled swordmakers turned to jewelry as a way of continuing their centuries-old skills. The pin retains its original pinstem and clasp.

Origin: Japan, ca. 1870. Condition: excellent, all original. Size: 2-1/8" x 5/8".

A delightful late Victorian or Edwardian pendant in the form of a poodle jumping through a hoop. The wonderfully detailed poodle is cast in sterling silver and the hoop is 14K gold. The dog is fully three-dimensional, and the eyes are set with small pyrope garnets. The pendant is marked “14K Sterling.”

• Origin: America, ca. 1910
• Condition: excellent
• Dimensions: 1-9/16” x 3/8” x 1-1/4”
Weight: 11.2 grams

Elegant signed Mikimoto brooch of 14K yellow gold with pearls. The pearls, ranging from 5 to 5.5mm are of the quality that only Mikimoto can produce. The body color is a bright white with silver overtones. The lustre is exceptional. The design is a sort of abstract flower basket design. The back is marked with Mikimoto's shell hallmark.

Origin: Japan, circa 1950s. Condition: excellent, all original. Size: 1-3/8" x 1-1/4". Weight: 7.0 grams.

An elegant Art Nouveau ring converted from an antique French 18K gold stickpin. The gold clover is decorated with small natural pearls on each leaf arranged around a small bright green emerald. The stem is worked in platinum and is set with a small mine-cut diamond for a little added sparkle. The 18K gold and platinum clover is attached to a 14K yellow gold band.
Finger Size: 6-1/2 (can easily be sized). Clover Dimensions: 1/2" x 1/2". Weight: 1.7 gr.

A fascinating Victorian brooch set in 14K yellow gold. The octagonal plaque with canted corners appears to be made of opaque black glass and is inset with an ornate glass design worked in the pietra dura method. The translucent design is backed with gold foil to create a subtle glittery effect. The setting is very simple and does not detract from the more important enamel work. Tested and guaranteed 14K gold.

Origin: Europe, possibly Switzerland, ca. 1850. Condition: excellent, all original, very light surface scratching visible with a loupe. Size: 1-1/8" x 3/4".

A very good Victorian 14K yellow gold stickpin in the Art Nouveau taste. The top of the pin is in the shape of a horse’s head completed with beautiful enameling. The eye is set with a small round cut ruby. The head is superimposed over a gold horseshoe studded with small old European cut diamonds. The gemstones, though small, are very good quality and provide a nice amount of sparkle. The back is marked “14K”.

Origin: America, ca. 1900. Condition: excellent, no enamel damage. Size: overall length, 2-13/32”; head, 5/8” x 5/8”. Weight: 2.5 grams.

A handsome pair of Edwardian yellow gold cufflinks, the faces formed from barbell-shaped batons of green serpentine. The stone has an attractive semi-opaque pale green color flecked with black specks. Serpentine was often used as a substitute for jade. The gold backs are marked “9Ct”.

Origin: England, ca. 1900. Condition: excellent. Size: faces, 7/8" long. Weight: 4.8 grams.

Very nice, heavy pair of 18K yellow gold cufflinks that resemble a link taken from a large chain. One cross-end is fixed, but the other is hinged so the cufflinks can pass through the hole. These cufflinks look very stylish streamlined appearance when being worn. Tested and guaranteed 18K gold.

Origin: America, ca. 1940. Condition: excellent, all original. Size: 15/16” x 3/4". Weight: 14.0 grams.

A very attractive pair of Victorian 14K yellow gold bean-back cufflinks finished in the softly bloomed “Russian” finish popular in pieces from the Art Nouveau era. The oval faces are simply finished with a beaded border and are star-set with small round brilliant cut rhodolite garnets. The stones have a very pleasing strongly purplish-red hue, easily mistaken for ruby. The backs are marked “14K”.

Origin: America, ca. 1900. Condition: excellent. Size: 3/4” x 9/16”. Weight: 6.8 grams.

A very fine Edo period Japanese mixed-metal brooch depicting a crane standing underneath flowering cherry trees alongside a rushing stream. The gold and silver details glisten against the coppery background. The back retains the original extended pinstem and c-clasp.

This type of work, sometimes mistakenly called “shakudo”, derives from the decorations used for samurai armor. After the demise of the samurai system in the 19th century, artisans who made mixed-metal decorations for armor turned to jewelry-making. These pieces became very popular in Europe and America when Japan was opened to trade.

Origin: Japan, ca. 1865. Size: 1” x 1-1/8”.

A pretty 14K yellow gold brooch designed as a cluster of leaves, each accented with a collet-set round ruby. The leaf surfaces have stippled and Florentine finishes for nice contrast. The back is marked “14K” and also has an illegible maker’s mark.

• Origin: America, ca. 1960
• Condition: excellent, all original
• Dimensions: 1-7/8” x –1-1/8”
• Approximate Total Gemstone Weight: .15 carat
• Weight: 6.0 grams

Handsome 14K yellow gold and sterling silver brooch signed by David Yurman. The center hexagon is set with a hematite cabochon above a collet-set round brilliant-cut pink sapphire, and is flanked with by rope-twist extensions highlighted with 14K gold banding. The back is signed “D. Yurman 14K Sterling”.

Origin: America, ca. 1995. Condition: excellent, all original. Size: 3-5/16” x 1”. Weight: 16.0 grams. Approximate Total Gemstone Weight: hematite, 13.36 carats; pink sapphire, .2 carat.

A classic late Victorian 14K yellow gold curb link chain bracelet with collet-set oval amethyst stations. The amethysts have nicely saturated violet color. Marked 14K.

• America, circa 1900
• 9 1/2" long
• Excellent condition
• 6.75 grams
• Approximate Total Amethyst Weight: 3.66 carats

A Victorian shell cameo depicting Aurora/Eos, goddess of the dawn set in a 14K gold frame decorated in the Etruscan taste withe beads and rosettes. The goddess is shown with her chief attribute, a pair of feathered wings in her hair (not to be confused with Psyche who has butterfly wings). The back retains the original pinstem and folding bail, but the clasp is an old replacement. Tested and guaranteed 14K.

• America, ca. 1870
• Excellent condition; no cracks to shell; replaced clasp
• 1-11/16" x 1-5/16"
• 7.4 grams

Elegant 14K yellow gold and pearl brooch in a modern bouquet design. The four pearl "flowers" are set atop golden stems that are tied with a swirling gold ribbon. Each pearl is 5.5 mm and has the wonderful white body color with silvery overtones characteristic if Mikimoto pearls. The nacre is thick and the skins are very smooth. The back is marked with Mikimoto's hallmark and "K14".

Origin: Japan, circa 1970. Condition: excellent, all original. Size: 1-5/8" x 1-1/8". Weight: 6.0 grams.

A very nice Victorian watch fob chain of woven hair accented with 14K yellow gold fittings. The weaving is very nicely done from hair in a soft chestnut color. The center of the chain features a paneled gold fitting from which is suspended a gold-mounted pendant drop with acorns and leaves. Hairwork jewelry was a cottage industry and was made both as memorial jewelry and as love tokens. Each end of the chain is finished with gold fittings, as well. A contemporary gold filled chain has been added to the back to transform the fob chain into an 18” long necklace.

Origin: America, ca. 1860. Condition: excellent. Size: 18” long (with extension); 12-1/2” long (without extension).

Lovely Victorian 18K yellow gold cufflinks featuring small seed pearls set in a diamond-shaped mounting. The faces are connected to the torpedo backs with beautifully crafted chains. The faces are marked “18CT” and the chains have an additional hallmark that is illegible.

Origin: probably England, circa 1900. Condition: excellent. Size: faces, 3/8” x ½”. Weight: 5.25 grams.

A large sterling silver locket from the Aesthetic Period, the cover decorated with an engraved Japonaiserie scene of a water bird landing among reeds. The bird is surrounded by a fan-shaped reserve. The ends of the locket are nicely enhanced with beading and a fancy border. The interior retains both original frames and glass enclosing either fabric. The back is unadorned. This locket is unmarked, indicating an American origin. American silver lockets from this era are far more uncommon than English versions.

• Origin: America, ca. 1860
• Condition: excellent, all original, no monogram or dings
• Dimensions: 1-3/8” x 1-5/8” (excluding bail)
• Weight: 18.2 grams