Top

A lady with a love for literature and shiny things discusses books & bling.

You are here: Home / Archives for Ring roundup

Ring roundup: several spectacular sapphire rings (III).

I like this particular ring roundup theme that I’ve done it two times before. I promise it’ll still delight you.

Sapphires are just so great. The variety in color, the richness of the deep blues, the wonder of a perfect cornflower glint. They’re a great choice for rings, because it’s a strong stone. Since it ties with its corundum cousin, ruby, on the Mohs hardness scale (just below diamonds) it’s safe for everyday wear.

Without further ado: I give you several spectacular sapphire rings. For the third time.

An antique French Belle Epoque ring with a 7 carat sapphire and a diamond-set platinum setting.How fantastic is this French Belle Epoque sapphire ring from Lang Antiques? That’s a 7 carat sapphire in that diamond-covered platinum setting.

An Omi Prive sapphire ring with pave diamonds. That center stone is 20.03 carats!

This glorious sapphire ring from Omi Prive features a 20.03 carat center stone in a glamorous pave diamond setting.

A 7.18 Carat no heat sapphire platinum and diamond ring.7.18 carats of luscious blue sapphire perfection, between two delicious epaulette-cut diamonds and accented with further diamonds on the sides. Yes.

Read More

A red ruby ring roundup.

One of the best parts of my jewelry blogging journey has been that I’ve had the opportunity to learn to appreciate new things. The more I see, the more new things I learn to love. For example: the ruby.

I never used to care much about rubies. They just didn’t excite me. But I’ve changed my tune: rubies are lush and luminous; the best ones glow in your hand like a captive ember. They symbolize passion: intense, all-consuming, unbridled passion. It’s also been thought to carry protective properties or represent prosperity.

Rubies – like their chemical counterpart, sapphires – are a 9/10 on the Mohs scale of mineral hardness, which makes them almost as resilient as diamonds (which are a 10/10). That means they’re a great option for engagement rings or everyday wear; they’re much less likely to crack or wear than something more fragile, like emeralds, opals, or pearls.

It’s also glorious to look at, which is where we’re going next. Let’s dive into a ruby ring roundup!

Exceptional Art Deco Burma ruby ring in platinum with diamonds. Circa 1930. At Lang Antiques. Let’s start out with something bold and old. This ring from Lang Antiques is Art Deco, circa 1930, and features a magnificent Burma ruby in platinum with diamonds. I love love love the color of that central ruby and the fascinating use differently-shaped diamond cuts in this unique piece.

An elegant antique cabochon ruby and diamond ring from the Art Deco era.This ruby ring is also Art Deco, but with a completely different feeling, thanks to its rounded cabochon of a center stone and gentle, almost foliate, shoulders.

A 16th century ring with a high quatrefoil bezel featuring a table-cut ruby set in high-karat gold. Here’s a ruby ring that will make the rest of these antiques look new: this one dates to the 16th century. Featuring a table cut ruby in a quatrefoil setting of high-karat gold and traces of black enamel.

An antique ruby and diamond crowned heart ring from Lang Antiques; circa 1900.The ruby in this ring is small, but it’s an important part of the visual effect. This crowned heart beauty dates to 1900, and features the most wonderful rose-cut diamonds.

Read More

Ring roundup: antique figural rings.

It’s been a while since we had a good old fashioned Ring Roundup!

Today’s has a simple theme: these glorious rings are all figural in some way – by which I mean that they’re shaped like something, either human or animal. (This was an accidental theme – it wasn’t until after I chose the first three that I realized I was feeling figural.)

Victorian rose cut diamond and mother of pearl turtle ring.

This Victorian mother-of-pearl ring dates to 1880 and is shaped like a turtle. A turtle!! It was originally a stick pin, but has since been converted. The setting is 18k yellow with a split shank design and the turtle is set with rose-cut diamonds. I dare you not to love this one.

Antique Art Nouveau figural signet ring in gold with a band shaped like two women. Circa 1900's.
This figural Art Nouveau signet ring kills me. The first several times I looked at it, I was sure that the two figures holding the central shield on their elbows were mermaids. I think they might actually just be ladies standing in decorative swirls, but I prefer to think of mermaids so as mermaids I shall think of them. How’s that for a sentence?

What blows my mind about this one is that it’s blank. Who could ever own such a fantastic signet ring and not have it engraved?? Maybe it was never purchased.

Art Nouveau ruby and carved moonstone cameo ring
This charismatic little ring is an Art Nouveau cameo ring formed from a carved moonstone face surrounded with rubies. Isn’t it interesting? It reminds me of ghosts or the moon, but I mean both of those in a very positive way.

Art Deco 18k gold, emerald, ruby, and diamond Egyptian revival ring, circa 1920s.

I’ve never seen anything quite like this Art Deco ring before. It reflects the Egyptian Revival style, the result of the 1920’s obsession with ancient Egypt. This ring has a glorious split shank design in 18k gold which supports the most magnificent headdress-wearing figure rendered in gold gemstones. My favorite part is those luscious ruby drop earrings that the figure in the ring is wearing.

Antique Victorian skull charm ring. This antique carved ivory skull charm has been set with diamond eyes and affixed to a golden ring.
This ring is much more adorable than I generally expect skulls to be. It features a Victorian carved ivory skull charm set with modern diamond eyes. I love the way the skull charm is attached to the ring shank in a way that allows it to move around. What an interesting way to re-purpose an antique finding.

(Please note that I may have stretched the interpretation of “figural” a tiiiiiiny bit in using it to describe all of these selections.)

These glorious antique rings are all for sale by A Brandt + Son.  For listings, please see links in descriptions above. All images and info are thanks to A Brandt + Son.

Follow along with me on Instagram