ABOUT:
Beautiful Victorian antique Old Mine Cut five stone diamond ring in 18k gold set in a belcher / buttercup mount setting. The best parts of this piece are the beautifully colored antique diamonds that have a wonderful champagne hue. Lovely sparkle and that delicious warm coloring. I showed it in pics next to whiter diamonds to try and demonstrate the contrasting hue. I and many other collectors seek out these old cuts with hues which are more unique than the more common whites.
They are all well matching with their champagne color, to even slightly light brown hue. They seem to vary even into peachy champagne depending on the lighting conditions.
British hallmarks for 18k, London. The date later is partially worn but it is an antique hallmark from the late 1800s to very early 1900s.
Please note the measurements as I have small fingers and it can be difficult to determine scale from pictures. Antique box is not included.
SIZE & MEASUREMENTS:
Size: 7 1/2
Diamond: The old mine cuts are about 2.5 to 3mm each, graduating just slightly down in size from the center, with the ring totaling just under half a carat / 0.5 carat.
Ring face: 6mm north south
Height off finger: 4mm tall.
Weight: 3.5g.
IMPORTANT CONDITION NOTES:
All my pieces are pre-owned and in estate condition. Under magnification the diamonds have natural frosty inclusions typical for antique diamonds which can't really be graded using modern day standards for machine cut stones. The smallest stone on the end is the most prevalent while the others are more slightly included. These are not glaringly visible to the eye unless they catch the light and are masked somewhat by the warm champagne coloring - the color of the stones is so wonderful. The setting is super sturdy and a very nice quality, holding the diamonds securely in the nice shaped prongs. So this antique piece could actually hold up to regular wear compared to some of the more delicate antique pieces. Surface wear and scratching to the gold but still a sturdy piece that is nicely shaped.
Very sweet piece from a very special era. 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! : )
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.) So it is difficult to judge antique stones against modern day diamonds and their grading system. No two old cuts are the same as they were crafted in times lacking any 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. It is also interesting that "lower graded" diamonds in today's scale system, were some of the best on the market during this 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 nicely: “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 individual beauty or sparkle of an antique diamond. Antique diamonds are judged more on the individual character and uniqueness that each one potentially offers.” Also interesting to note that often there are variations of diamonds in the same piece as the goldsmiths of the time created pieces with the stones they had available to them.
Thanks so much for looking at my items!
Box #@c.5@4
