I take regularly scheduled inventory trips to Europe and around the USA to find unique antique items to bring you! These pieces were all hand picked one at a time to assemble a collection that I hope you will enjoy! Thanks for stopping by!
ABOUT:
A classic French beauty with a delicious old mine cut diamond! This vintage solitaire ring is crafted in 18k yellow gold and holds an eye clean, natural antique 1.3 carat chunky old mine cut diamond in the elegant six prong setting. Just enough height for stacking, gorgeous coloring and patina.
My favorite part of the crystal clear natural diamond is the warm pale yellow hue which seems to change based on the lighting conditions. Estimated at L/M in color, we antique enthusiasts love to find these warm stones that were cut during a period when the mines produced warmer rough. This chunky diamond can sometimes face up brighter / whiter, but also has a tendency to reflect some of its yellow gold setting giving the stone a beautiful warm glow.
With the setting being a timeless classic six prong, I'm not sure if it is antique or vintage. It is definitely not new and is for sure vintage, but it may not be as old as the antique stone. The hallmarks just appear a bit too crisp and the edges are a bit edgier than we usually see in antique settings. The French don't use dated stamps so I am selling it as the antique stone in a vintage setting to be safe.
Found in Paris with clear French hallmarks for 18k with a goldsmith stamp. These are off to the side and could be avoided if a sizing is desired. The prongs are excellent making this beauty ready for daily wear.
I love antique diamonds, even those with inclusions and hues and eccentricities typical for the time, because some of those were still among the best available in the market during that period, and were expertly cut by hand to enhance their best characteristics. So I don’t often like to compare antique stones against "the Four C's" modern grading standards that were created for mathematically perfected machine cut stones produced by the millions of carats each year - but estimated at L/M in color and VS in clarity. See more notes below as I always provide more detail about each exact / individual diamond than just a letter grade provides.
Please note the measurements as I have small fingers and it can be difficult to determine scale from pictures. Antique box is not included.
MEASUREMENTS:
Size 7 1/8 as it sits between the 7 and 7 1/4 lines on the mandrel.
The diamond measures 6.4mm cushion cut with a chunkier depth bringing the carat weight to 1.3 carat.
The piece weighs 3.35 grams.
IMPORTANT CONDITION NOTES:
Not a chip on it and an excellent clarity for an antique stone. Face up there is nothing eye visible. Really the only thing to note is the indented natural inclusion on the girdle edge of one side. This is seen under magnification when viewing the stone from the side. GIA defines this as a dent that occurs under the surface of a diamond as a result of the diamond cutter's decision not to polish it off, because doing so could end up harming the diamond so the cutters would work around it - this is not considered a defect or blemish, but a natural characteristic of the antique hand cut stone.
This is my personal favorite color to find in antique old mine cut diamonds, not vibrant / fancy in color but delicious pale yellow.
The stone is secure in the setting with long prongs, it is ready for daily wear.
Love this one!
Please note that all my pieces are pre-owned and in estate condition. They will have patina, surface wear, a few small nicks. These pieces may also have evidence of a sizing, some build up around the stones and / or inclusions seen under magnification, typical for antique pieces. I have mentioned any noticeable issues above and they are all still wearable and eager to be loved and accepted for many years to come, (the preservation of antique jewelry, even those with signs of their age and history, is important to me. : )
But - Please note due to age, this piece is not in mint condition. Pictures also serve as part of the description and condition report so please utilize the zoom feature which will magnify any wear significantly more than what is visible to the eye while wearing : )
I enjoy making my customers happy and matching unique pieces with new homes. Please feel free to reach out to me with any questions! It means a lot to me that you are visiting my shop! : )
SOCIAL:
Please feel free watch @mouseshouseantiques on Instagram for inventory drops, sneak peaks and previews! And check out my website www.MousesHouseAntiques.com as I can add more pics there so you can get extra looks : )
A note about antique diamonds:
The whole "4 C's" of cut, color, clarity, carat didn't come about until the 1940s so prior to that and especially on antique pieces, there was not as much emphasis placed on those things. (Sure people probably appreciated a certain look of a certain diamond as it appeared to the eye but it was not a graded scale like we have today for machine cut stones.) It is difficult to judge antique stones against modern day diamonds with their grading system evaluating their mathematically perfected proportions using methods and standards that didn’t exist for hand cut old cut diamonds. No two old cuts are the same as they were crafted in times lacking those modern standards. The diamond cutters of the time were experts at hand cutting each stone to enhance it which means that even lower color grades can be cut to appear whiter. (Although it is also worth noting that many antique collectors prefer and seek out antique diamonds with warmer hues.)
It is also interesting that "lower graded" diamonds in today's scale system, were some of the best on the market during that period! So it is less about their grades and more about the unique play of light and color that each one can offer. I read one article that put it: “When searching for the perfect old cut diamond (for you), you need to view them through different eyes as you would for a modern diamond." Laboratory grading reports don’t offer too much information in regards to the beauty or sparkle of an antique diamond, which is based on the individual character and uniqueness that each hand cut stone potentially offers.
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