Catalog: Estate Jewelry: Gold (95)

This pretty stickpin is made of (stamped) 14kt white gold and is set with an unidentified colorless gemstone - not diamond or one of the common substitutes for diamond. Not glass or plastic - it's a real stone. Also a real mystery. Whatever it is, it's a perfect complement to the setting. There is an illegible maker's mark. Overall length is 2 3/8" and it’s C. 1915. (Stick pins are pins similar to small dressmaker pins, except that they are longer and often have quite ornamental tops to them...

This strikingly beautiful pin is an interesting mixture of the Art Nouveau and Victorian styles. The Victorians loved to use real insects in jewelry. This particular type was a favorite.The Nouveau jewelers loved naturalistic motifs, but generally didn’t incorporate organic substances – yet the design of the framework is very Nouveau. Marked “14k”, the pale gold setting contrasts nicely with the deep green of the beetle. The pin stem assembly is original...

This pretty lavaliere is made of 10 k gold with an especially rich color. The oval gem is actually an amethyst look-alike--a garnet/glass doublet*and the dropper is a fresh water pearl. The pendant is 1 1/4" x 5/8" in size and is on a 16" gold filled chain. Circa 1900. *Check out the blog accompanying item #1416939 for more about garnet/glass doublets.

This petite gold-filled Edwardian fan-shaped fretwork pin measures 15/16” x 7/8”. A bit worn in places, but still very nice. Oddly, the watch hanger tests as 10k. Signed SIMMONS and RFS & Co (for the R.F. Simmons Co. of Attleboro, MA). Circa 1915. The photos are part of the description; please examine them carefully. Thanks! Shipping, handling & insurance within the USA included.

This yellow gold necklace is centered by a dark red garnet (probably a spessartite). Garnets are the birthstone for January, and were traditionally thought to keep travelers safe. The dangle is set with a blister pearl which has a mellow off-white color. There are 3 tiny seed pearls in the main setting. It is hallmarked “9ct”, and the attached chain is marked “375 9k.” The pendant measures 1-5/16" x 7/8", and the total wearable length is 16-3/4" (we have extenders available)...

This pin is unusual due to its length: it measures 2-1/4” x ½”. The fancy engraving is enhanced with black enamel, and the pin is centered by a faux pearl. The central element makes us think of a gear – this would be great to wear to a Steampunk event, or any event with a Victorian theme! It shows a little wear, but it’s still very pretty. The clasp might be a replacement. If so, it’s an old repair. The photos are part of the description. Please examine them carefully...

This fantastic jewel tests as a very strong 14kt, so it’s likely a 15kt English piece. It is set with what we are pretty sure is an iolite (hard to test because of the setting), and 4 pear-shaped purple garnets, all foiled, all set within an Etruscan Revival motif of coiling snake-like decorated gold ropes and leaves, with two dangling gold chains. The brooch measures 1-1/2 x 1-1/2 x 3/4" deep and weighs 8.7g. With the chains, the whole piece measures 2-1/2” long...

This lovely Art Nouveau lavaliere is unusual with its square lines at the top, making it both charmingly antique and very modern in appearance. It is made of 9 ct gold and is set with amethysts [the smaller stones] and a garnet/glass doublet. ] The pendant is 2" x 1", and is on a 16" 14 k gold chain [modern]. The pendant itself is circa 1900.

This Victorian-style ring has a Gothic design sensibility. The elaborate prongs set off the large iolite (approx. 2 ct.) very nicely, and it includes 4 small single cut accent diamonds. The setting measures 7/8” north to south, and 3/4” east to west. Approximately size 8-1/2. It is marked 14k, the setting is rose gold and the shank is yellow gold. The stones are in excellent condition. The photos are part of the description; please examine them carefully. Thanks! We do lay-away...

The front of this locket features a lovely Egyptian girl or woman – or perhaps a goddess! - in profile, wearing a headdress (from which a few locks of hair have escaped – so charming!), and hoop earrings. She is nestled within a crescent moon (symbolic of the female principal, intuition, and new beginnings). Inside it has both photo rings, but no celluloid. That can easily be fixed with plastic, if desired...

Dainty and lovely, this enamel, pearl, and sapphire Art Nouveau stickpin is 14k gold and just plain beautiful. The pin is set with seed pearls and a faceted sapphire and the enamel shades from pink to green. The head of the pin is 1/2" and the pin itself 2" in length. Comes with a clutch to protect the end. [No matter how lovely the stickpin, it's bad if you stab yourself!] Circa 1900.

This beautiful pendant/pin has a stylized floral motif, with enamel that shades from green to yellow, in a design reminiscent of a French fleur-de-lis. It is centered by a small diamond (approx. 5 points), surrounded by a pearl-set modified starburst which accents the enameled “petals.” In 14k rose gold, it measures 1” in diameter at the widest point. The bale folds down nicely when it’s worn as a pin. We had the enamel touched up a little at the edges, to restore it to its original exce...

Also an embarrassment, since two gemologists can't determine what the stone or the metal might be. However, this is a very beautiful Egyptian Revival piece which ought to be vintage (or even antique) The enigmatic yellow stone does not appear to be glass and the metal tests as 10 k gold, but by this time uncertainty rules! The pin is 2 5/8" overall, and the decorative head is 7/8", so it's large enough to make a statement on your lapel. We think it's circa 1900, but are not sure. There a...

This necklace has all of the wow factor you expect from French jewelry. It is 18k gold (of course) open-work, with two palmate elements on each side. They join in a filigree-like round element that suspends a fifth, larger palmate element. The elaborate chain consists of marquise-shaped filigree links. The French eagle mark, indicating both French origin and 18 k gold, is on the clasp. The necklace is a generous 17 1/2" long. Circa 1890-1900. For all its dainty appearance, the 18k gold giv...

These are very unusual! We have only seen one other pair with photos, and those were not gold. Each cuff link features a photograph of an elegant lady in a high-necked blouse with upswept hair. This pair was clearly worn a lot, based on the patina, but they still look great. The 10k marks are on the back of the fronts only, not on the “torpedo” ends. We don’t test torpedoes, so can’t promise that they are also 10k, but they certainly look it. The fronts measure 7/8” x 5/8”, the torpe...

We believe this lovely (unmarked but tested) 10kt gold jewel is from a time when cannetille work was the vogue because gold was scarce: very fine gold wires twisted into thin strands and then formed into rosettes and other shapes. The amethyst is a delicate shade of purple, and weighs approximately 2.5 carats – it’s very deep. (Amethysts are said to bring calm, and help banish headaches.) The whole lavalier, including the bale, measures 1-1/2 x 9/16”. Two of the seed pearls are missing but...

This pretty pin measures 7/8” across. Some of the leaves are enameled in shades of green, yellow and orange, alternating with leaves set with 3 seed pearls each. (The colors make it perfect for Spring or Fall!) It is centered by another seed pearl. The findings are original, with an interesting security clasp. The clasp has a maker’s mark: an arrow with a circle at the end, most likely for Robert Klitz, of New York. It doesn’t have a hallmark, but it tests for 14k gold. Circa 1900. The ph...

This English jewel reflects the aesthetics of fin de siècle France and Russia, with its pink topazes and demantoid garnets. The fairly large oval topazes are surrounded by swirls of seed-pearl-set gold, and set off by 4 bright green demantoid garnets, two of which are set into the fine chains which connect the top section to the bottom; of the other two, the top one is a modified pear shape, the other is oval. The jewel measures 2” long by 1-1/8” across at the widest point, and weighs 5.4g....