Jewellery

In the art and antiques market, the jewellery category spans the millennia from ancient artefacts fit for Cleopatra herself to modern branded wares by famous French and American ateliers. This may include objects of significant intrinsic worth – valued for the gemstones and precious metals from which they were made – but also objects fashioned from more humble materials that are appreciated simply for the excellence of their design.


Coming up in ..... London

12 July 2002

Sotheby’s announcement of the discovery of a cache of Nelson memorabilia that has been hidden away for almost 200 years has generated huge media interest.

Tiffany name works its magic as travelling case makes £2000

19 June 2002

WITH little in the way of furniture at this 1000-lot Essex sale at Ambrose on 17-18 May it was left to jewellery to provide the higher prices and collectors’ items to provide the wider interest.

Irish patriots stick by their national silversmiths

09 May 2002

Jewellery and silver enthusiasts were catered for in Ireland as well as Wiltshire during April as private buyers flocked to O’Reilly’s (15 per cent buyer’s premium) sale of gemstones and silver in Dublin on April 10.

Early 19th century diamond necklace

02 May 2002

“It was like the 1970s all over again,” said John Benjamin of Woolley and Wallis, describing the breadth of quality at his jewellery sale in Salisbury on April 24-25.

Feathers help necklace to take off

12 April 2002

THE Prince of Wales feathers to this Victorian gold fringe necklace, right, revealed that it was manufactured by Robert Phillips of Cockspur Street, London, whose signature the royal feathers were, but it may as well have been the work of any number of designers working in the Etruscan Revival style during this period – Carlo Giuliano, John Brogden or Augusta Castellani.

Lady of the rings suffers from unsure provenance

22 March 2002

Shortly before her execution at Fotheringay Castle in 1587, Mary Queen of Scots gave this portrait ring, right, to her lady in waiting, Mary Strickland, as a keepsake. This was the story told to Devon auctioneer Robin Fenner by the vendor, whose late mother was the last of the Boynton Stricklands.

Jewels of the 1920s that transform a routine day

14 February 2002

A privately sourced collection of jewellery boosted this first dispersal of the year in these Hampshire rooms at George Kidner on 9 January – “the bulk of the rest of the material was just good stock pieces”, said auctioneer Andrew Reeves.

Idealistic settings that brought joy and tears

23 January 2002

Tiaras: A History of Splendour by Geoffrey C. Munn, published by the Antique Collectors’ Club. ISBN 1851493751 £45 hb

Scarabs animal and mineral…

23 January 2002

The Jeweled Menagerie: the World of Animals in Gems by Suzanne Tennenbaum and Janet Zapata, published by Thames & Hudson. ISBN 0500510490 £30hb

Regal talismans

23 January 2002

Diamonds: in the heart of the Earth, in the heart of the Stars, at the Heart of Power, by Hubert Dari and Violaine Sautter, published by Vilo International. ISBN 2845760329 £40hb

Chaumet’s three steps to heavenly victory

23 January 2002

PARIS: This extraordinary 2ft 3in (69cm) showpiece entitled Christus Vincit, made by Joseph Chaumet for the 1900 Exposition Universelle, sold for Fr2.8m (£267,000) at Calmels-Chambre-Cohen on December 10.

The People’s Commissariat and the Imperial family jewels

14 January 2002

A jewellery sale held by Sotheby’s on November 27 included a few exhibition and sale catalogues, plus a very rare and important work published in Moscow in 1925 by the People’s Commissariat of Finances.

No tantrums over this tiara

24 October 2001

The market continued to favour top-quality fresh-to-the-market works at the expense of lower-end entries at Phillips (15/10% buyer’s premium) antique and modern jewellery sale on October 10.

£1500 Edinburgh rock

22 October 2001

One of the prettier pieces among the 300 jewellery and silver lots put up at Edinburgh by Phillips (15/10% buyer’s premium) on September 21 was this diamond, rock crystal and nephret lily-of-the-valley brooch, right. Estimated at up to £1000, it sold at £1500.

Diamond geezers

28 September 2001

Harlequin Unmasked: Commedia Dell’Arte and Porcelain Sculpture by Meredith Chilton, published by Yale University Press in association with the Gardiner Museum of Ceramic Art, Toronto. ISBN 0300090099 £45hb

Selection of gems

31 August 2001

French Jewelry of the 19th Century by Henri Vever, translated by Katherine Purcell, published by Thames & Hudson. ISBN 0500237840 HB slipcased £195 until December 31, 2001, then £225.

Hearts and flowers

28 August 2001

A continued demand for good quality Georgian and early Victorian jewellery at Phillips (15/10% buyer’s premium), Bayswater, 415-lot antique and modern jewellery auction, August 7, saw this gem set heart-shaped locket pendant, c.1830, steal the top slot.

Jewellery in demand in move to the city

21 May 2001

UK: Chillingham Castle, Northumberland, is the usual venue for Jim Railton's, Gosforth, spring sale, but the predations of Foot and Mouth meant that it had to be relocated to one of the smarter districts of Newcastle-upon-Tyne.

Customs tighten rules for temporary export items

28 August 2000

UK: THE London Chamber of Commerce are alerting dealers and auctioneers to a tightening in Customs regulations for those wanting temporary export licences for antiques – in particular jewellery.

Dickinson add jewels to portfolio

05 June 2000

Art dealers Simon C. Dickinson have made a bold new incursion into the luxury market by adding a jewellery arm to their existing Old Master and Impressionist and Modern business, which made sales of £100m last year.

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