Egyptian Revival Archives

Top picks from the Leslie Hindman September sale!

August 23, 2017

It’s that time again, my darlings! Time to peep the goodies in Leslie Hindman’s September sale, that is. If you remember the spectacular and diverse treasures of Leslie Hindman’s past auctions, you’ll know that this is an excellent reason for excitement.

Lot 27: A Victorian Silver Topped Gold, Turquoise, Garnet and Diamond Serpent Necklace, Circa 1840.

If you know me, you know that a classic Victorian era snake necklace is high on my personal jewelry bucket list. This baby right here, with its vivid turquoise scales, bewitching ruby cabochon eyes, sassy diamond eyebrows and sensuously articulated body, makes me want to swoon.

There just aren’t that many antique snake necklaces of this caliber in existences. If you have the resources to buy this treasure, DO IT. And then please let me be your friend so I can stare at it.

Lot 47 An Art Moderne Blackened Steel, White Gold, Cultured Pearl Diamond Brooch, Marsh & Co.
Lot 48 A Pair of Art Moderne Blackened Steel, White Gold, Cultured Pearl and Diamond Earclips, Marsh & Co.
Lot 49 A Platinum and Diamond Ring, Spaulding & Co., with Blackened Steel Jacket Ring, Marsh & Co.

These are iconic Marsh & Co blackened steel; a strange, extremely cool collector’s item. Antique Jewelry University has a great article about Marsh & Co, but here’s the short version: they had a jeweler who also loved shotguns and their distinctive blackened steel fine jewelry is the result.

I saw my first Marsh steel pieces last summer and I couldn’t stop touching them. The contrast of the textured steel with sparking diamonds or lustrous pearls is totally irresistible in person. They’re also understated; this is a collector’s item you really could wear every day. I’d love to own one myself someday.

Lot 16 An Egyptian Revival Yellow Gold, Amethyst and Enamel Necklace.

I couldn’t resist including this gorgeous Egyptian Revival amethyst pendant. The giant purple gem is obviously beautiful, but it’s the enamel detail that makes my jaw drop. The overall shape is vaguely floral, but the embellishments are actually winged scarabs.

Even better news? This beauty’s estimate is well under $1,000. That’s a lot of look and a cool historical aesthetic without too much of an investment.

There’s lots more lots* to love in Leslie Hindman’s September Sale, so be sure to take a look at the full catalog! They have showings coming up in Chicago and NYC in late August, and then the auction itself is September 10-13.

* I know I make that joke too frequently when I write about auctions but I can’t help myself.

This sponsored post is brought to you by Leslie Hindman.

Lots to love in Leslie Hindman’s April jewelry sale!

March 28, 2017

There’s nothing like spring. New leaves on the trees, flowers blooming everywhere, and – of course – April jewelry auctions!

Leslie Hindman’s got some truly fabulous pieces heading to the auction block, and we’re going to take a look at them here today. This auction isn’t happening until April 23-24th, so you have plenty of time to reflect upon these beauties and decide to make them yours.

Leslie Hindman Auctioneers’ jewelry specialist, Alex Eblen, was kind enough to chat with me about the April jewelry auction. Alex is a delight and I couldn’t resist sharing a few snippets of our conversation directly.

Alex describes the April jewelry sale as ” a wonderful cross between an elegant 12-course meal and a comfort-food buffet.”

An opulent 12-course meal by offering important snapshots of Tiffany (and its star designers) from over 100 years of its history; a great selection of Mid-Century signed jewels by Van Cleef & Arpels, Bulgari, Oscar Heyman, David Webb and others; and of course the necessary selection of exquisite diamonds and colored stones including a 5.79 ct Golconda-Type antique marquise cut diamond ring and a rather extraordinary 11.00 carat unheated Burmese sapphire ring from the Deco period.

A guilty-pleasure buffet by providing so many covetable, wearable jewels for tantalizing estimates. Just look at the “contemporary” area towards the end of Day One. We have a great archive of more obscure designers (Barry Brinker, K. Brunini) offered side-by-side with classics from Angela Cummings, Schlumberger, Cartier, and many more. All at prices where, with luck, you can afford to chase more than just one.”

Doesn’t it sound scrumptious?? Don’t worry, we’re about to take a nice, long look at the goodies. And if you want to see these pretties in person, the April jewelry sale’s NYC preview is April 3-5 and the Chicago preview is April 19-23.

Lot 27: A Platinum Topped, Yellow Gold, Peridot and Diamond Demi Parure.

Holy moly. Peridot of this quality is noteworthy in any situation. To find this many stones cut so beautifully and combined in a gorgously designed antique parure that comes in its own fitted box(!!) is truly something to get excited about.

If you follow your Pantone trends, you’ll note that this parure perfectly captures the 2017 color of the year, Greenery.

Lot 29: A Yellow Gold, Polychrome Enamel and Multigem Butterfly Motif Pietra Dura Swag Necklace.

There is so much happening here and all of it’s magnificent. Pietra Dura! Enamel! Color! Festoons! The detail view on the right gives to an idea of how intricate this one is, down to the individual enameled links.

Lot 69: A Fine Platinum, Burmese Sapphire and Diamond Ring.

This ring is ridiculously beautiful. That perfect stone in that elegant Art Deco setting is a hard-to-resist combination.

Alex told me that this sapphire is his very favorite stone in the April jewelry sale. Why? Because this 11 carat no-heat Burmese sapphire “strikes a lovely balance between hue, tone and saturation. Burmese stones can provide so much punch to their blue but can often go towards a darker tone when really strongly saturated. This gem remains “open” and has stunning “crystal” (high clarity).”

My January Bidsquare wishlist.

January 26, 2017

Today we’re going to have an other edition of one of my favorite pastimes: looking at jewelry I want to buy through Bidsquare!

When I feature auctions, the temptation is always to show you the most spectacular, mind-blowing pieces. We’re still going to do a little of that today. But my main focus is going to be on highlighting the achievable Bidsquare pieces: the ones that a person like you or I could potentially afford and wear in real life.

Because that’s the real fun of auctions, isn’t it? The thrill of the hunt, the chance for an unexpected find or a spectacular deal.

I know you’re with me, because I also know that a few of you are the new owners of auction items I featured in December. Thank you for giving those pieces good homes! I can’t afford to adopt them all myself.

This is an incredibly cool Egyptian revival style enameled silver piece by renowned Mexican jewelry designer, Margot de Taxco. The silver keeps it affordable while its provenance guarantees quality. It’s awesomeness, I believe, is apparent; it’s so bright and interesting. The bidding for this beauty starts at just $250.

This necklace would fit right into any number of contemporary wardrobes. It’s funky and vibrant, with an obvious quality of craftsmanship that keeps it feeling luxe.

The coolest thing about Bidsquare – as we have discussed before – is the fact that it brings you lots from many different reputable auction houses, all in one place. The lots in this post come from a couple of different sales; click on the links below the pictures to go directly to each piece’s listing.

This is SUCH a cool ring. It’s antique and features luminous abalone in a lacy, filigreed 10K gold. The design is so interesting, and the bidding starts at just $100 so it’s wonderfully affordable as well.

This is a perfect buy for someone who’s new to auctions and wants an exciting piece to start with that won’t do toooooo much financial damage.

This ring is not low budget. But it’s so, so, so good that buying it could never be a bad idea. That’s a 5.23 ct no heat Ceylon sapphire framed by 12 full-cut diamonds and flanked on the shoulders by a pair of baguettes.

This piece is gorgeous and a 5.23 ct Ceylon sapphire is nothing to sneeze at. Even cooler: we know its history. This ring comes from the Estate of Jane Warren Jones, of Greenwich, CT, and Toronto, Canada. She was an accomplished artist with a passion for jewelry, and many of the items in her collection were either custom made for her or purchased from the top jewelers in Greenwich and Toronto in the 1940s-60s.

The auction estimate is $20,000 – $30,000. So as I said…not low budget. But extremely worth buying if possible.

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