Catalog: Antiques: Decorative Art: Jewelry (230)

8K eighteenth-century portrait ring under crystal of Sarah Churchill, Duchess of Marlborough. Miniature portraits were painted on vellum or ivory and given as tokens of love to husbands and wives or parents and children. Portrait rings with diamond bezels, such as ours, reflect the importance of the subject. The paintings would be commissioned to the leading miniature portrait artists of the day. Sarah Churchill had a close friendship with Queen Anne of England...

our early C1790 Georgian 18K seven stone diamond half hoop ring has seven table-cut diamonds (flat on top, faceted sides). The ring is closed back and the diamonds are foiled backed, exactly the way gemstone rings were made in the Georgian period. The diamonds are mounted in silver and set in gold, as the Georgians believed silver was better suited to set off the cool white tones of diamonds. This ring would make a lovely engagement ring or gift to oneself. The ring is a size 7.

Antique marquise shaped 18K gold and chrysoberyl ring is an excellent example of Portuguese jewelry of the late 18th century. The Portuguese mined these gemstones from their colony in Brazil and created jewelry that was typically pave-set as seen here. The ring is size 10 and can be sized to fit.

Our exceptional 18K Georgian woven mesh featherlight necklace is both light in color and weightless about the neck. Woven mesh chains like this one are rarely found, as their delicacy makes them quite fragile and few have survived over the years. We have found one which has weathered the passage of time beautifully and likely sat in someone's jewelry drawer untouched for many generations...

Georgian ring of green paste in a basket setting flanked by two clear pastes on each side. Paste is colored or clear glass, often lead or flint, cut in the same fashion as gemstones and used as a substitute especially while traveling. Antique paste jewelry was valued on its own merits and not as an imitation of another piece of jewelry. This Georgian 15K gold, green paste ring is a size 7 1/2 and can be sized. It measures 1/4" at its widest.

C 1760 Rare Chelsea seal of a harlequin boy in black face mask with a metal ring at the top. The colors are magnificent. The seal evokes the Commedia dell'Arte, an early form of popular comedic masked theater originating in Italy and popular in Europe from the 16th to the 18th century. The harlequin alone is rare; a harlequin in blackface, rarer still...

Georgian diamond ring in a snowflake motif set in silver with an 18K band will sparkle in sunlight and candlelight. Notice the gorgeous back, a work of art in and of itself. The ring back is cut down so that the metal is cut to fit the stones and gives a more refined appearance to the ring. The ring is size 6 1/2 and can be sized to fit.

Unusual 15K gold memorial ring depicting an urn in hair paint, surrounded by alternating rose diamonds and amethysts. The enameled band reads "John Jenkins died 20 Feb 1780". The back of the ring is engraved "In loving one sincerely there is great merit".

Condition: excellent

Exquisite Georgian rock crystal riviere set in silver with a 15k gold mount and an open back. Rock Crystal is transparent quartz often seen in fine antique jewelry. It is extremely hard and was thought to transmit positive energy and to have healing properties. This rare necklace is wonderful for evening wear. With its mass of crystals gems mounted perfectly next to its neighbor, with little to no metal clasps visible in between, this necklace creates a lovely composition on one's neck...

Original eighteenth century Chelsea Seal in the form of a grotesque figure of a black masked man with 3 cornered ("tri-corn") hat. The tri-cornered hat was a popular hat worn in the 18th century by both aristocracy and commoners, as it was designed to better reveal one's highly fashionable wig. Our male figure is in black breeches, standing on a white base with the motto "Tou jour gay" ("always happy")...

Eye catching 15K gold and amethyst ring surrounded by pave set chrysoberyls from Portuguese mines in Brazil. Fabulous jewelry was made from the various gemstones exported from these mines until the French invasion of Portugal in 1809. The ring is size 8 1/4 and can be sized to fit.

Dramatic and rare Georgian 18K gold and agate navette shaped ring revealing endless variations of the moss agate stone. Navette means "little ship", and shaped like a pointed oval. Agate is a variety of quartz that occurs naturally in nature and during the period that this ring was made, were mined in Scotland. The brown, black and tan colors swirl around the ring in a lively array. Every plane of our agate navette ring has smooth polished surraces, with the gold band as reflective as a mirror...

Poesy rings were popular in England and France during the 16th through the 17th centuries as lover's gifts. The quotations were often from courtship stories and are usually inscribed on the inner surface of the ring as is the case in this one. This ring amusingly reads "A virtuous Wife Preferreth Life". We imagine that in the 17th century, a woman was indeed better off being virtuous! We think this could make a more unusual and unique wedding band than a gold band...

Late renaissance memento mori skull ring. "Memento mori" jewelry translates to "remember thou must die", a reminder to all to live life fully, as death awaits. Memento mori rings were meant to encourage the practice of reflection on one's mortality. This is a very early ring with black enamel etching along the sides and back and a perfectly shaped skull in intaglio on the front. The ring is silver gilt with black enamel carving. Circa 1620. US size 8 1/2.