A Few More Gems at the Auctions
We love looking through auction catalogues to see what beautiful and interesting gems are coming up for sale. Here are just a few gems we have seen recently for upcoming auctions.
Sotheby’s
London: Fine Jewels
Live Auction: 19 September 2023
Georg Jensen | Henning Koppel, Sodalite and Pink Tourmaline necklace, 1950s
… of abstract design, set with cabochon sodalite and circular-cut pink tourmaline.
length approximately 520mm, signed Georg Jensen, maker’s mark for Henning Koppel
Estimate: 8,000 – 12,000 GBP
About Hennig Koppel
Hennig Koppel studied at the Kunstakademiet (Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts) and the Academie Rancon in Paris, joining the Georg Jensen Company when he was 27. His designs are noted for their organic aesthetic, as inspired by other artists of the time such as Salvador Dali. After Georg Jensen’s and Pederson’s deaths in 1935 and 1937, the firm was able to remain at the forefront of Scandinavian design thanks to designers such as Henning Koppel.
ROSKIN REPORT NOTES:
Sodalite
Sodalite is often confused with Lapis. There has recently been discovered a new source for fine quality sodalite in East Africa. We should be reporting on that discovery within weeks.
Bonhams
Unmounted Colored Diamond
AUSTRALIA JEWELS
8 August 2023, 18:00 Sydney
Catalogue
The round brilliant-cut Fancy Yellow diamond weighing 6.15 carats.
Footnotes
Accompanied by GSL report no. AA67150, dated 8 December 2022, stating that the diamond is Fancy Yellow colour and VS1 clarity.
Estimate: AU$50,000 – AU$70,000
SOLD: AU$104,550 inc. premium
ROSKIN REPORT NOTES:
Please note that the diamond grading report states the color of this diamond to be FANCY YELLOW (S-T), which, according to the GIA grading scale, S-T is a Light Yellow, and Fancy Yellow would be graded past Z.
So is it S-T, or Fancy Yellow. It cannot be both. (Although it is tempting… do not grade the image.)
More Bonhams
A PAIR OF 14K GOLD, RUBY AND DIAMOND EARRINGS
WEEKLY JEWELRY
8 August 2023, 12:00 PDT
Online, Los Angeles
Estimate: US$1,200 – US$1,800
Description:
• 14k yellow gold
• 2 hexagonal ruby tablets
• Numerous round and single-cut diamonds weighing approximately 0.98 carat total
• Measures 1 1/4 x 1 1/8 in.
• Estimated gross weight: 23.0 grams
Footnotes
Metal stamped and tested for 14k gold; superficial wear in the form of minor scratches; overall good condition.
MAJOR COLORED GEMSTONE: ruby – tablet
Approximate Dimensions: 32.20 x 23.73 x 3.58 mm
Hue: reddish purple
Approximate overall color and clarity (diamonds): I-J-K, SI-I
ROSKIN REPORT NOTES:
The color would best be described as purplish-red or purple-red instead of reddish-purple. Those descriptions would then have red being the primary (not secondary) color, since we are calling them rubies – and rubies are red, not purple.
…. and they did not sell.
More Bonhams
RHODONITE, DIAMOND AND COLOURED DIAMOND PENDANT NECKLACE
AUSTRALIA JEWELS
8 August 2023, 18:00 Sydney
Estimate: AU$5,500 – AU$7,500
Sold for AU$6,765 inc. premium
ROSKIN REPORT NOTES:
Rhodonite is typically an ornamental opaque gem material and so this is quite rare to see a transparent gem mounted in a pendant. (A great collector’s stone!) There is transparent material available, as we saw a booth displaying transparent rhodonite in Tucson this year, but its rarity (unknown to most consumers), along with its durability issues (soft and breakable), makes it a challenging retail sale.
