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Superb Retro Emerald and Diamond Drop Earrings
Catalogue:
Estate Jewelry:
Gold:
Retro:
Pre 1960 item# 954889
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GlitzQueen History and Art to Wear
Phone: 505.205.1404
$3,450
(With free delivery to any country where we ship
& glamorous gift-wrap if desired)
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This holiday season, spoil somebody special with vintage earrings fit for a queen. Featured in this stunning pair are two Colombian emeralds -- the best -- of mesmerizing deep green, plus 26 dazzling diamonds, set in icy white gold. All the gems are highly rated for proportion, symmetry and polish, as well as clarity and color.
This design is a timeless classic, but we believe the earrings were made soon after the end of World War II, when white metals returned to favor and jewelry expressed a new mood of opulence -- which was more than welcome, following two decades marked by ecomomic depression and then conflict and rationing. In the same family since around 1950, they can't be newer than that. If older, they'd have to date from the 1920s or earlier. This is possible, but unlikely, given their splendid condition.
The excellently matched emeralds (SI-1 clarity, type III, Colorscan 205) are beautifully cut in pear shapes and together weigh about .8 carats. The brilliant-cut round diamonds comprise about .5 carats. The two diamonds on the surmounts, larger than the accent stones, are of VVS clarity and G/H/I color. Including the 14k mountings, the earrings total 2.3 pennyweights (equal to .115 troy ounces or about 3.58 grams). Other weights are approximate, based on measurement, since removing stones would compromise the integrity of the setting.
The pair appraised at $2,900 in 1990, when gold cost about half its current price and good Colombian emeralds hadn't yet become scarce. Our technical information comes from that gemologist's appraisal document.
Please e-mail to confirm availability, order or request more photos. Thanks for looking!
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Vintage Emerald Bracelet - Lovely Floral Design, Mint
Catalogue:
Estate Jewelry:
Gold:
Period:
Pre 1980 item# 953551
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GlitzQueen History and Art to Wear
Phone: 505.205.1404
$435 SALE. Was $585.
With free delivery to any country where we ship
& beautiful gift-wrap if desired.
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If you're longing for a vintage emerald bracelet or know somebody who is, here's one at an indulge-yourself price.
Intricately detailed, this stunning jewel from a Dallas area estate showcases 13 well-matched emeralds, true green. They're set amid fancy links with stylized floral ornaments. Each gemstone measures about 3mm round, so there's loads of color, and a hidden box-style clasp provides excellent security without detracting from the design. Length is about 7 inches, which is right for the average-sized wrist. If you're smaller, a link or two can be easily removed.
This bracelet looks brand-new, although the prior owner remembers getting it around 1980. Obviously she didn't wear it much, but you'll make up for that, won't you?
As for value, have you noticed vintage bracelets that are only emerald GLASS (and set in silver or even base metal) are selling elsewhere online for more than $200? Why not pay just a little more and have the real thing?
Please e-mail to confirm availability, order or request more photos. Thanks for looking!
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Vintage Modernist Diamond & Emerald 14k Ring
Catalogue:
Estate Jewelry:
Gold:
Modernism:
Pre 1980 item# 953548
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click for details
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GlitzQueen History and Art to Wear
Phone: 505.205.1404
$435 SALE. Was $585.
With free delivery to any country where we ship
& beautiful gift-wrap, if desired.
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Perfect for dazzling someone special this holiday season, here's a stunning vintage ring paved with 6 emeralds and 10 diamonds. The jeweled area is quite large -- almost .75 inch tall and .5 inch wide -- and its ribbons of gems form a sleek and sophisticated geometric banner that rises importantly above the hand. All 16 gems are brilliantly faceted and about 3mm round. The emeralds are a deep true green, very well-matched for color and size.
Because the face is of white gold, while the shank is of yellow gold, this is a ring that can be worn beautifully with either metal.
Hallmarked 14k, the ring is in such fabulous condition that it can't have been worn much. It reached us from an extensive New Mexico estate collection and appears to date from the 1970s or early 1980s. Glamorous cocktail rings enjoyed great popularity then, as they also did in the 1950s, but the earlier designs tend to have wider bands and generally lack grace. Notice the pretty, fluid lines of the dual band, which merges into a single shank at the back to facilitate resizing. It's currently about a US size 5.25-5.75. (We state sizes as a range, because results from different types of measuring equipment can vary up to half a size, as our fingers also do with the time of day and temperature.)
There's no charge for insured U.S. shipping and gift-wrap is always free when desired. Please e-mail to confirm availability, order or request more photos. Thanks for looking!
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Deco Revival Jeweled White Gold Necklace - Custom, Mint
Catalogue:
Estate Jewelry:
Gold:
Period:
Pre 1980 item# 953543
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click for details
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GlitzQueen History and Art to Wear
Phone: 505.205.1404
$525 SALE. Was $675.
With free delivery to any country where we ship
& beautiful gift-wrap, if desired.
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This gorgeous estate jewel, crafted to the design of its former owner, is in the Art Deco manner. The spectacularly detailed pendant, patterned even on its sides and back, measures about 1 ¼ inches tall, more than half an inch wide and 1/8 inch thick. At that size, it's quite heavy, containing lots of white gold plus three sizeable blue topaz stones of lovely cut and color.
These stones were taken from an antique ring, so their color is natural, which may be as significant for safety as value. Nearly all blue topaz sold now and in recent years has been treated -- often by radiation, not merely intense heat. (So-called “Swiss Blue” and "London Blue" are really clear or brownish stones that get their Windex or denim hues entirely by artificial means, including multiple nuclear bombardments.)
To complete the necklace, the former owner chose this very elegant 18-inch gold snake chain hallmarked 14k Italy, which has a sleek lobster clasp and is worth hundreds of dollars in its own right.
Making this an even more appealing gift choice, every inch of the necklace is like new. It can't have been worn much. Also pristine is its fabric-lined presentation box from Silverman's. Established in 1934 as a supplier of fine jewelry to retail and wholesale markets, Silverman's later entered the retail field and had 30 showrooms in 10 states when the company was sold in 1999. Because of their expertise in jewelry fabrication, they were known for excellent custom work, all produced in the original El Paso factory. Their one-of-a-kind designs are of course especially collectible. Most are wedding rings, so this pendant is rare. Its next owner can be confident that nobody else has one like it. Exact dating of the pendant and chain aren't known, so we're just calling this "period" rather than vintage.
There's no charge for insured U.S. Priority shipping and gift-wrap is always free when desired. Please e-mail to confirm availability, order or request more photos. Thanks for looking!
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Antique Art Nouveau Gold and Amethyst Heart Stickpin
Catalogue:
Estate Jewelry:
Gold:
Art Nouveau:
Pre 1900 item# 845749
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GlitzQueen History and Art to Wear
Phone: 505.205.1404
$120 SALE (Reduced from $145)
Free USPS Priority Shipping
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The gracefully stylized heart form of this lovely stick pin, with its slight assymetry, dates it firmly to the Art Nouveau era -- and it's certain to be a Victorian jewel, since it isn't marked but tests as 10k gold. (Hallmarks weren't mandated in the U.S. until the Edwardian era.)
The almandine-shaped stone of rich purple is gorgeously faceted and appears to be genuine amethyst. After a century, glass would be badly abraded, whereas the gem shows hardly any wear, even under high magnification. As the stone's setting is open at the back, we know the color is natural, without foil enhancement.
Length of the pin is 2 1/4 inches and the heart measures about 5/8 inch by half an inch. Condition, as you see, is lovely in every way. Even the stock shows no waviness, which is quite rare. Provenance of this treasure is a Midwestern estate.
Stickpins are perfect with fashion's classic mood today, and they make fabulous gifts for both men and women.
There's no charge for insured U.S. shipping and gift-wrap is always free when desired. Please e-mail to confirm availability, order or request more photos. Thanks for looking!
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Antique Nouveau Enameled Rose Gilt Leprechaun Pin
Catalogue:
Estate Jewelry:
Gold:
Art Nouveau:
Pre 1900 item# 731479
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GlitzQueen History and Art to Wear
Phone: 505.205.1404
$139
(Free U.S. Priority Shipping
& Gift-Wrap if Desired)
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This enchanting Celtic Art Nouveau brooch is an extraordinary find from one of our best sources in the British Isles. The figure in the foreground is a leprechaun, elf or any other sort of magical little "fairy down the garden". Exquisitely detailed, he's applied atop a repoussé toadstool, overlooking a green loch and golden hills with pretty engraving, beneath a blue sky accented by puffy white clouds.
The enamelwork on this jewel is gorgeous and in lovely condition. So, too, is the rose gold gilding, which shows only minor losses on the pin. The front is slightly concave and the domed back is beautifully surfaced, either hammered or cast in a dimpled pattern and fitted with the tube hinge and open C clasp indicative of great age. Its pinstem was snipped at some point, not a bad idea since the elongated ones of the 19th century could so easily draw blood. The jewel measures about 1 1/4 inches round with scalloped and beaded edges. It dates most likely from the 1890s, but could be a little earlier or later. Wouldn't it make a fabulous St. Patrick's Day present?
There's no charge for insured U.S. shipping and gift-wrap is always free when desired. Please e-mail to confirm availability, order or request more photos. Thanks for looking!
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1940s Retro Trifari Vermeil Rhinestone Heart Earrings
Catalogue:
Estate Jewelry:
Gold:
Retro:
Pre 1950 item# 727465
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click for details
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GlitzQueen History and Art to Wear
Phone: 505.205.1404
$115 SALE (Reduced from $140)
(Free U.S. Priority Shipping
& Gift-Wrap if Desired)
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During World War II, when lesser metals were required for military use, jewelry makers turned to sterling. The result was very classy, especially when the silver was washed with gold -- like these exceptionally fine vermeil earclips by Trifari, set with loads of brilliant baguette rhinestones.
Interestingly, rose gold -- a color tremendously popular then and flattering to every complexion -- has again been designated "the" jewelry color by today's top designers.
The heart shape was a mainstay of wartime fashion, attesting to love for a sweetheart far away, and of course romance never goes out of style.
For both high quality and sentiment, jewels from this era are highly collectible today and rapidly appreciating in value as they approach antique status (75 years, by American standards). From a Dallas area estate, these earrings measure about 1" x 3/4" and are in superb condition. They're marked for sterling and bear the Trifari stamp.
There's no charge for insured U.S. shipping and gift-wrap is always free when desired. Please e-mail to confirm availability, order or request more photos. Thanks for looking!
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Lovely Hallmarked Gold Twin Hearts Ring c 1930
Catalogue:
Estate Jewelry:
Gold:
Retro:
Pre 1940 item# 727457
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GlitzQueen History and Art to Wear
Phone: 505.205.1404
$75 SALE (Reduced from $95)
(Free U.S. Shipping
& Gift-Wrap if Desired)
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This graceful vintage double heart ring would delight your favorite little girl or can be worn beautifully by a petite lady, either as a pinky jewel or sized up for the ring finger. It's of hallmarked 10k gold and the current size is about a U.S. 3.
Condition, as you see, is excellent and probable dating would be the 1930s, making the ring either late Deco or early Retro. The Depression years were times of hardship, when jewelry makers made gold go farther with openwork designs. They also employed surface textures to provide a sparkling substitute for gems. Notice how pretty the patterning is here.
There's no charge for insured U.S. shipping and gift wrap is also free if desired. Please e-mail to confirm availability, order or request more photos. Thanks for looking!
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Elegant Vintage Diamond and Crystal Sweetheart Locket
Catalogue:
Estate Jewelry:
Gold:
Retro:
Pre 1950 item# 727452
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GlitzQueen History and Art to Wear
Phone: 505.205.1404
On hold.
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Why not slip your photo inside this beautiful vintage locket and delight someone special? It's quite a special jewel, in that an actual diamond is on its bail and the locket is richly surfaced in 18K gold -- which makes me think the heart-shaped central garnet might be the real thing, too. If not, it's a great pretender. So are the brilliant diamond rhinestones that surround it. Size is about 5/8" x 5/8" and there's a good tight closure.
Probable dating would be the 1940s, since sweetheart jewelry was extremely popular in the World War II era. Also, jewelry makers short of supplies during wartime often mixed real and costume materials. Condition is lovely; there's only slight surface wear, most on the back.
A fabulous way to wear it would be on a red velvet ribbon tied around your neck or wrist.
There's no charge for US shipping and gift-wrap is always free when desired. Please e-mail to confirm availability, order or request more photos. Thanks for looking!
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Antique Deco Enameled White Gold Diamond Wrist Watch
Catalogue:
Estate Jewelry:
Gold:
Deco:
Pre 1940 item# 711286
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click for details
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GlitzQueen History and Art to Wear
Phone: 505.205.1404
$165 SALE
(Reduced from $235)
Free U.S. Priority Shipping
& Gift-Wrap if Desired
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Glamor and practicality used to be on closer terms than they are today, and nowhere is that more apparent than in watch design. If you’re like me in preferring a feminine style that’s properly scaled for a lady’s more delicate wrist, this antique timepiece may be just what you’re looking for.
Its shape, as you see, is very Art Deco, featuring fancy geometric lugs on which four small diamonds twinkle amid black enamelwork, plus gracefully stepped sides and even a domed crystal that arches like a moon bridge. Also indicating a Deco dating, the surface is white gold, rather than yellow. The numerals are of icy white metal, too, applied on an ivory-colored dial. Because they’re on the large side and alternate with slender teardrop, the time is easy to read without strong color contrast. Even the hands, also of white metal, have a jazzy streamlined form.
The case was crafted circa 1925-1935, at a time when the Benrus Company took the lead in style, edging out competitors whose watch designs were less fashion-forward. The mechanisms were also of excellent quality, all imported from Switzerland, and this one uses 21 jewels, well above the norm of 17. The face is marked Benrus 21 Jewels and the case back reads 10 K.R.G.P. Bezel and St. Steel Back 594197, telling us the front is of rolled gold, which is far more durable than ordinary plating, joined to a sturdy backing of stainless steel. The number must have meant something within the company; it can’t be a patent registration or would mean 1897, when the founder was only three years old. Benrus is a contraction of the name Benjamin Lazrus, who was an early 20th century immigrant from Romania, working in New York City. His firm later became notable for a host of technological innovations, such as date indicators, waterproofing and eventually electronic components. By the mid-20th century, Benrus dominated the market, but this beauty comes from the time when it employed just a few skilled artisans dedicated to producing chic designs for the first generation of liberated American women.
The watch reached us in entirely original condition from a New Mexico estate, where the dry air preserves historic jewelry well, and there’s been no restoration. We added only a fresh black cord band right for the period, easily replaced by your jeweler in the size and color you prefer. It takes high magnification to notice any wear, mainly fine scratches to the crystal. We'll pack with great care, of course, but antique watches can be temperamental about transport. Although it’s running fine now, it could need minor adjustment after shipping.
There's no charge for insured U.S. delivery and gift wrap is always free if desired. Please e-mail erinharris@comcast.net to confirm availability, order or request more photos. Thanks for looking!
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