Catalog: Estate Jewelry (1615)

A handsome griffin with back-stretched wings, a lion’s head and a curling serpent’s tail grasps an old mine cut diamond in this 19th century French brooch and necklace slide. Interestingly, the creature’s tongue is licking the diamond. The eye is set with a small faceted ruby. The back retains the original pin stem and a hinged clasp so the griffin can be attached to a chain. The hinged clasp is marked “Déposé” meaning the griffin was a patented design. Tested and guaranteed 18K gold. A bail could easily be added for wear as a pendant.

• Origin: France, ca. 1880
• Condition: excellent
• Dimensions: 1-1/2” x 3/4”
• Approximate Diamond Weight: .12 carat
• Weight: 4.7 grams

A colorful butterfly, it’s old mine cut diamond and sapphire body sporting wings studded with rubies, rose cut diamonds and emeralds, stands atop a diamond-encrusted twig in this gorgeous late Victorian jewel. Victorian butterfly jewels usually portray the insect with its wings spread in a rather rigid fashion. This pose is far more naturalistically attractive. The stones together weigh close to 3 carats, and all have excellent color. The piece appears to have been converted from a brooch into a pendant with the addition of a hidden bail at the back. Tested and guaranteed 18K. The contemporary chain is stamped for 18K.

• Origin: probably France, ca. 1890
• Condition: excellent
• Dimensions: 1-1/4” x 1-1/4”; chain length, 18”
• Approximate Total Gemstone Weight: diamond, 1.20 cts; sapphire, .38 ct; ruby, .67 ct; emerald, .63 ct
• Weight: 9.3 grams.

An early Victorian 14K yellow gold locket enhanced with a pretty design of painted enamel roses and taille d'epargne tracery. The exposed gold surfaces are further decorated with engraving. The back cover has a style of engine-turned engraving usually found only in the late Georgian or very early Victorian periods. The interior retains both of the original glass covers and gold frames.

• Origin: America, ca. 1840
• Condition: excellent; no enamel damage; a pinpoint ding to the back cover
• Dimensions: 1-1/16" x 1-1/2" (excluding jump ring)
• Weight: 8.2 grams

This substantial Victorian 14K gold chain can be worn alone as a statement piece or be used to suspend a heavy locket or pendant. Each link is reeded to add extra texture and shine. The links are open so the chain can be used to suspend a series of charms, if desired. The chain is completed with a spring ring clasp. The clasp is marked "14K" and the chain is tested and guaranteed 14K, as well.

• America, ca. 1880.
• Excellent condition.
• 22 3/4" long.
• 16.4 grams.

A lovely Victorian starburst pendant worked in 14K yellow gold and set with an old mine cut diamond at the center. Stars in Victorian jewelry symbolized guidance and wisdom. Most Victorian starbursts have straight rays, but the Art Nouveau-influenced curlicue design of this example makes it especially nice. The diamond at the center has good brilliance, I/J color and VS1 clarity. The pendant retains the original brooch fitting, as well, but it is very well hidden when being worn as a pendant. Tested and guaranteed 14K (the newer bail is marked 10K).

• Origin: America, ca 1890
• Condition: excellent
• Dimensions: 1-1/8” diameter
• Approximate Diamond Weight: .35 carat
• Weight: 4.3 grams

A lovely, and rather heavy Art Nouveau 18K gold watch pin decorated with finely cast and engraved fuchsia blossoms and leaves. Even the overall inverted teardrop shape of the pin is reminiscent of the drooping profile of a fuschia. In Victorian flower language, the fuschia represented "good taste." Pin retains the original clasp and watch hook. It could also be worn as a pendant with the addition of a couple of hidden loops to the back that could be attached to a split chain. Tested and guaranteed 18K.

• Origin: America, ca. 1890
• Condition: excellent
• Dimensions: 1-1/8" x 1-1/16"
• Weight: 5.7 grams

An extraordinarily fine Renaissance Revival 14K gold ball fob, suspended from its original chain. The orb is beautifully decorated with foliate engraving in the English style crisscrossed with bands of small natural pearls. The upper half of the orb is set with three blue sapphires in pinched floret mountings. The chain, fashioned as a series of florets, is alternately set with antique cushion cut sapphires and rubies flanked at compass points by natural seed pearls. The chain terminates with its original swivel hook. The rubies and sapphires have good color and show no evidence of heat treatment. The pearls have very luster. Tested and guaranteed 14K.

Origin: America, ca. 1870. Condition: excellent, all original. Size: sphere, 15mm diameter; chain & fob overall length, 117mm. Weight: 11.9 gr. Approximate Total Gemstone Weight: ruby, .10 ct; sapphire, .18 ct.

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 fine Victorian 18K yellow gold fancy link long chain necklace. The 45” chain has ornate scrolling plaques separated by smaller simple links. The fancy links are further highlighted with beaded decoration. The generous length allows the chain to be worn doubled or tripled. In fact, the chain has an ingenious clasp that holds the necklace at just the right staggered length (21” and 25”)when doubled. The chain can be worn doubled, or at full length by releasing one of the clasps. Necklaces of this style are distinctly French and were popular from the Second Empire through the beginning of the 20th century. This example is stamped with French 18K gold hallmarks and an illegible master goldsmith’s mark.

• Origin: France, ca. 1880.
• Condition: excellent; all original.
• Length: 45”.
• Weight: 34.6 grams.

A lovely Art Nouveau 14K yellow gold medallion pin depicting Hamlet’s beloved Ophelia (the brooch uses the French spelling “Ophelie”) surrounded by cattails, willow branches and waterlilies, all symbols of her watery grave after she was spurned by Hamlet. Her hair is studded with small old mine cut diamonds. The back has a hook that would have been used to suspend a watch. The back retains the original c-clasp (marked 14K) and extended pinstem. Unlike most Art Nouveau medallion pins, this example is not hollow and is heavy. This design was created by the French jeweler Emile-Séraphin Vernier (1852-1927) and was introduced at the 1908 Exposition de la Parure de la Femme in Paris.

Origin: America, ca. 1900. Condition: excellent, sharp detail. Size: 1” diameter. Weight: 7.4 grams. Approximate Total Diamond Weight: .1 carat.

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 brooch worked in pietra-dura. The design depicts a colorful purple iris blossom with foliage and buds against a black background. The pieces of stone are very well-cut and fit tightly into the design. The back retains the original brass pinstem and c-clasp.

Origin: Italy, ca. 1880. Condition: excellent, all original. Size: 1-1/8 diameter.

An superb 14K yellow gold Art Nouveau locket, the cover decorated with an ornate image of a Valkyrie, one of the "Choosers of the Slain" in Norse and Germanic mythology. The image is beautifully detailed with fine facial features, flailing hair and, of course, the winged helmet set with an old European cut diamond for a touch of sparkle. She is depicted in mid-flight with a background of swirling clouds. The interior retains the original frames and covers. The back has a period "CEC" monogram. Tested and guaranteed 14K.

Noted for both their beauty and their iron will, the Valkyries were responsible for choosing who would die a hero and who would simply die. Once the heroes were ensconced in the afterlife, the Valkyries provided them with wine, food and various other desirable services for all eternity.

Origin: America, ca. 1890. Condition: excellent; sharp detail. Dimensions: 1-1/16" diameter. Weight: 6.6 gr. Approximate Total Diamond Weight: .03 ct.

A phenomenal Victorian 18K yellow gold brooch in the Etruscan Revival taste. The brooch features a large azurite-malachite cabochon weighing more than 60 carats. The natural fissures, and blue and green color mottling is striking, especially against the richness of the gold. The setting is one of the best Etruscan frames we’ve seen, befitting a minerological specimen that would have been considered extravagantly exotic (probably originating in Afghanistan). The stone is set in a collet surrounded with a border of beaded rosettes flanked on either side with delicate twisted wire. The frame is decorated at compass points with shell motifs outlined with twisted wirework. Cyma scrolls and graduated beading fill the space between the shells. The surface of the gold has the slightly matte bloomed finish that lends the appearance of antiquity to the better Etruscan pieces. The back of the brooch retains the original c-clasp and extended pinstem. Tested and guaranteed 18K gold.

Origin: America or England, ca. 1860. Condition: excellent, the border has two of the tiny rosettes and a tiny portion of one cyma scroll missing, but these are noticeable only upon very close inspection. Size: 2” x 1-11/16”. Weight: 19.75 grams.

A French silver watch chain with a button hook on one end and a locking swivel on the other. The beauty of this chain is its absolute simplicity. It would look great paired with additional silver chains of various styles to create a longer necklace. Paired correctly, the button hook would make a superb hook for a locket or charms. The chain is stamped with a boar’s head hallmark for 800/1000 silver purity.

• Origin: France, ca. 1880
• Condition: excellent, all original
• Dimensions: 11-5/8” long
• Weight: 16.9 grams

A very good Victorian 18K gold watch fob worked with yellow, green and rose gold in an ornate rose pattern and mounted with an oval faceted citrine. The blossoms and foliage completely encircle the domed mounting decorated with stippled engraving. The fob hangs from an ornate foliate scroll. The gemstone in a fob such as this would often have been engraved with a monogram for use as a letter seal, but this citrine was never engraved. Tested and guaranteed 18K.

Origin: America, ca. 1880. Condition: excellent, sharp detail. Dimensions: 3/4" x 5/8” x 1-1/4”. Weight: 9.1 grams. Approximate Total Gemstone Weight: citrine, 8.0 cts.

A very nice pair of Victorian cufflinks, the rectangular faces with canted corners and decorated with a plain band bisecting a field decorated with rococo foliate engraving. This is a design type more often seen on English cufflinks of the period, and it has a faintly heraldic appearance. The plain band, in fact, would have been ideal for a monogram. The connectors are marked 14K and also have the maker’s mark for Carter, Gough & Howe.

Origin: America, ca. 1880. Condition: excellent, sharp detail, never monogramed. Dimensions: 11/16” x 7/16”. Weight: 8.5 grams.

A very nice Victorian 15K yellow gold ring featuring three beautifully colored spessartite garnets separated by rows of seed pearls. These garnets are not the typical murky reddish stones, but brighter orangey-red with nice fire. The gold surfaces are elegantly engraved in a floral motif that goes all the way around the shank. The ring was expertly sized at some point, keeping the hallmarks intact, and with matching engraving. Fully hallmarked for Birmingham, 1868.

Origin: England, 1868. Condition: excellent. Dimensions: crown 5/16” wide, tapering to 3/32” at the back of the shank. Finger Size: 7-1/2. Weight: 2.0 gr. Approximate Total Gemstone Weight: 1.6 cts.