Spaulding & Co. - Jewels New York Monday, December 9, 2019 | Phillips

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  • Video

    Spaulding & Co., 'An Art Deco Diamond and Platinum Ring', Lot 10

    Jewels, 9 December

    • Circa 1925

    • A modified marquise brilliant-cut diamond, 7.69 carats
      Baguette-cut and fancy-shaped diamonds
      Platinum, size 6

    GIA Report: D color, VS2 clarity
    Accompanied by a Diamond Type Classification for GIA Diamond Grading Report

  • Catalogue Essay

    Origins

    The origin of the marquise-cut diamond dates back to the 18th century when King Louis XV of France commissioned his jeweler to create a diamond cut that mirrored the perfect lips of his mistress, Jean Antoinette Poisson, the Marchioness Madame de Pompadour. Poisson’s court title, Marquise, historically refers to a nobleman who supersedes an earl and count, but is below a duke. Following Poisson, courtiers later wore navette or marquise-cut diamonds publicly to demonstrate their rank in society.

    This Art Deco, 7.69 carat, marquise-cut diamond ring stands apart not only for its substantial size, sensuous shape and premier color, but also for its type IIa designation, as type IIa represent only one percent of all natural diamonds.

    What are the properties that make type IIa diamonds such a rare natural phenomenon? Foremost, they contain negligible amounts of nitrogen within their crystal lattice structure, making it difficult for them to absorb short-wave light. Thus, light directed at a type IIa diamond is immediately reflected and returned to the beholder’s eye, producing a breathtaking limpidity that other diamonds do not possess. Furthermore, colorless varieties of type IIa diamonds are remarkably transparent, with the highest color grades because they are composed almost entirely of carbon. Lastly, these diamonds are typically devoid of inclusions; they are pure.

    If you aspire to own a diamond that is completely colorless, type IIa and romantically fashioned with an open culet and wide, sensuous curves, look no further. This Art Deco beauty set in its original platinum Spaulding & Co. mounting is singular.

Property of a New York Collector

10

An Art Deco Diamond and Platinum Ring

Circa 1925
A modified marquise brilliant-cut diamond, 7.69 carats
Baguette-cut and fancy-shaped diamonds
Platinum, size 6

Estimate
$150,000 - 250,000 

Sold for $200,000

Contact Specialist
Susan Abeles
Head of Department, Americas and Senior International Specialist
New York
+1 212 940 1383

Jewels

New York Auction 9 December 2019