Catalog: Estate Jewelry (461)

Composed of a continuous metal band wound around a glass cabochon, this pendant has a clever design and sophisticated look. It needs only a simple cable chain and a dark fabric to bring out the cloudy, art glass that highlights pale pink or gray, depending on the light. The pendant measures about about 2 inches long. The silver chain in the last photo is sold separately.

These petite earrings feature central disks of faux turquoise set in pinwheel-like frames, reminiscent of southwest U.S. or Mexican design. They have working screw backs and can be easily converted to posts. The screws are marked sterling with a capital F in circle, possibly for George H. Fuller & Son, Pawtucket, RI. (The mark may apply to the fittings only.) They measure ½ inch in diameter.

The earrings are composed of single rosettes of gilded sterling silver and iridescent green glass. The screw backs are marked ‘Mexico/Silver.’ Each earring measures 1 ¼ inches wide.

This simple yet sturdy bar pin is unmarked but likely Native American from the 1950s or 1960s. It has a warm patina from age(although a cleaning after the photography has brightened the surface a bit) and its design is well detailed. A secure rollover clasp may have been added later to replace a C-clasp. It tests for sterling silver and measures 2 inches long by just under 3/4 inch at its widest part. Weight: 11.1 grams

This Victorian revival sterling silver cuff is elaborately decorated with repousse flowers and leaves, with a scrolled reserve at each end. It was made by Kirk & Son of Baltimore, MD, as part of a line of 19th-century-inspired jewelry, some made of pewter. This is one of the larger and more elaborate designs. The sterling and maker’s marks are inside the bracelet. Circumference is about 8 inches, including the 1/2-inch opening; the bracelet is slightly over 1 1/4 inches wide. Weight: 41.8 grams (1.34 t oz.)

This festive necklace is composed of large, faceted Bakelite beads interspersed with round one. The necklace has been restrung with a new yellow metal spring-ring clasp and jump ring, so is quite secure. The beads come in butterscotch, black, cherry, root beer, dark brown, orange and marbled green, to name a few shades. There is one round bead that appears to be Prystal. All beads definitively pass the Simichrome test except for the black. They are probably from the 1940s. The necklace measures 21 inches long; the large beads are ½ inch wide.

Composed of two rectangular layers of sterling silver, top one curved and with a cutout comma-shaped design exposing a highly oxidized interior. The ring is marked sterling and has Joseph Skinger’s script signature mark. Skinger was a Vermont studio metalsmith who was most productive during the 1950s and 1960s; he died in 1967. I am told by Carol Skinger, Joe's daughter, that the design is known as 'Mountain Shadow' and was produced as choker necklaces, bracelets and pins. The top of the ring measures ¾ inch by 5/8 inch. It is a size 6 full. Weight: 5.3 grams

Composed of delicate vertical leaf fronds, this necklace looks to be of fine gold, but is really made of gold-plated metal. The bright surface shows very little wear, due to Krementz & Company’s rolled gold-plating process used on the Newark, NJ, firm’s best lines of costume jewelry. The leaves are textured with detailed lines produced by careful engine-turned engraving. The chain is composed of tiny cylindrical pieces secured to a fine wire so that they are stabilized. There is a spike and drum closure, and the script Krementz signature appears on the back of one leaf. It dates from the 1950s. Each leaf measures a little over 1 1/4 inches long; the necklace measures 15 1/4 inches long.

Decorated with classic Nordic scene of a manned sled drawn by a moose in a snowy landscape, framed by a colorful aurora borealis. The enamel exposes nice guilloche work underneath, in a modified lozenge-shaped frame. The back bears the mark of Ivar T. Holth and the Norway mark for sterling silver. The silver is gilded. The pin measures 1 3/8 inches long by 7/8 inch wide. Weight: 5.7 grams

This pin bridges mid-century modernist and Southwest aesthetics with its angular design and polished ceramic cabochon resembling turquoise. It’s marked 925 for sterling silver at one end; the original rollover clasp is very secure. The pin measures about 3 inches long by ¾ inch wide.

A stylized geometric openwork design characterizes this handmade bronze ring, made around 1965-1970. The band is adjustable, and bears the unidentified maker’s mark of P.N., in addition to the Finland mark. The tiny bumps of metal on the edges are from the casting process. The top measures 1 ¼ inches long by 1 inch wide; the band is currently sized at approximately a 7.