Antique Ring with Sapphire & Diamonds in Gold & Platinum, Art Déco c. 1930

Nothing is as constant as changing fashions. After the richness of ornamentation in the late 19th century, Art Nouveau artists wanted to establish a new, fresh art with a new formal language. However, the sweeping lines of Art Nouveau were soon considered too rich and heavy, and with Art Deco, designers ventured a step further in the direction of abstraction, clarity and austerity. The formal language was increasingly reduced to clear and mostly symmetrical geometries. No moving lines, no historical forms, no water lilies or cranes, but circles, lines and angular shapes. This ring shows this vocabulary in beautiful form. The design is striking and powerful. The centerpiece is a sky-blue sapphire that has been faceted into a cushion. The stone shows a very homogeneous color distribution and is very clear, with only a few natural inclusions. One of these, on the edge of the table, is particularly beautiful: it shimmers in the colors of the rainbow! The sapphire is not cut completely symmetrically, like so many old colored gemstones: The top of the stone at the bottom is slightly off center and in this it follows the natural shape of the crystal. By making these changes to the cut, the cutter was often also able to influence how the color distribution in the stone appears to the observer: If zones with a lighter color are cut a little thicker, for example, the stone appears homogeneously uniform in color when viewed from above. The ring sets the sapphire in platinum and surrounds it with an entourage of diamonds. They transform the round shape of the stone into a clearly defined octagon. To the right and left, four more diamonds lead over to the ring band. They are individually set in platinum frames. The ring band and the lower edge of the ring face are made of yellow gold, typical of the time. We date this very well-preserved ring to around 1930. An independent expert opinion has confirmed the quality of the materials. It is enclosed with the ring.

Estimate:£3,898.88

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