“It is pretty common to see a Victorian amethyst or a Georgian garnet rivière,” she says. “We have had one in almost every sale and they range from £600-800 up to £4000-5000 depending on quality. Less common would be a citrine rivière, rarer still are examples in topaz. However, it is once in a lifetime that you might come across something like this.”
A late George III silver and gold mounted multi-gem-set rivière comes with its original cross pendant and its fitted case by SJ Phillips and is in excellent condition.
To each of the closed back collets, joined by links set with cushion shaped diamonds, is the name of the encased stone and its weight. Having had the stones certified for sale, the auction house has discovered four of the stones (three peridots and a sapphire) were incorrectly labelled when the necklace was made c.1800.
At W&W on April 27, it is estimated at £25,000-30,000.
Hampstead sale
A fine multi-gem-set rivière with seed pearl and gold petal shaped spacers was sold by Hampstead Auctions (20% buyer’s premium) in north London on February 28.
Housed in a Harvey & Gore box, it was accompanied by a handwritten note detailing the stones as jasper, banded onyx, almandine garnet, chrysoprase, carnelian, chalcedony, lapis lazuli, aquamarine, emerald, ruby, topaz, sapphire, tourmaline, hessonite garnet and chrysolite with an amethyst to the centre. It sold at £4000.
