Ring of 10.67ct oval-shaped and two 6ct diamonds by JAR, est. $2.5-3.5 million at Chrisite's HK May 29 (Chrisite's Images)

One thing that sets the designs of Joel Arthur Rosenthal apart is his approach to stones. He always chooses the very best, but it’s more than that. The Bronx-born designer who became known as “JAR of Paris” proved what a designer can achieve by going against convention when it comes to cut and color.

On top of the record-size private collection up for sale in May at Christie’s Geneva, Christie’s Hong Kong just announced they’ve got a little JAR of their own. How’s this for a sparkler?

Those are all D color, flawless diamonds, of course, so you can imagine the flash that gives off. That center oval-shaped diamond is 10.67 carats and it’s flanked by two diamonds of 6.04 and 6.07.

Note the setting of blackened metal lined with accent diamonds – typical JAR. (See what I mean in the amazing diamond thread ring pictured below.) This three-diamond ring is expected to fetch between $2, 500,000 and $3,500,000 at Hong Kong Magnificent Jewels sale on May 29.

Before it left for Asia for the rest of its pre-sale tour, many got to admire it stateside last week at Christie’s New York, Rockefeller Center, where it was on display with the 18 JAR jewels from the Geneva sale.

I’m not sure where Rosenthal got the diamonds in that ring, but the New York-based diamond dealer William Goldberg & Co. has been working with him for at least 25 years. I spoke a few years ago to Saul Goldberg, before the much-publicized Ellen Barkin sale, about what it’s like working with Joel Rosenthal – and what he looks for in diamonds. “He would expect a flat, cushion cut or an unusual rose cut, a special pink or blueish-green diamond – something exotic, always exotic,” Goldberg said, adding that it’s extremely difficult to predict JAR’s taste, even after two decades.

JAR diamond thread ring from the 2006 Ellen Barkin sale (Christie's Images)

“Something I might think he would like, I could be so off base. And something I don’t think he’ll like, he loves,” Goldberg said. “My father had that relationship with him also. We thought of him for special pieces that would come along, but we could never seem to predict his taste. The tone of pink might not have been his tone of pink, or the tone of blue might be beautiful but we wants it more gray than blue.”

In terms of shape, the Goldbergs learned to avoid showing him the angular cuts that were in fashion long after Rosenthal began rejecting them. “He definitely likes flat stones, not your conventional, traditional cuts. He likes soft things – a cushion or an oval, nothing with hard edges,” Goldberg said.  “Give him a pointy stone and he’ll say, ‘Cut off the points, then show it to me.’ Or show him a pear shape and he’ll say, ‘Cut off the point at the bottom.’ He can dictate those things because it’s him. He’s the designer. He is a great artist.”

If you want to see an interesting example of the JAR approach to topaz, you can find it here. Since we’re talking rocks, let me show you a couple more of the JAR-picked beauties you’ll find at the Christie’s Geneva sale next month:

Ring of Colombian emerald, natural pearls and diamonds, 1988, est. $500-700,000 at Christie's Geneva in May (Christie's Images)

Pendant brooch of garnet, ruby and diamond by JAR, 2001, est. $170-220k at Christie's Geneva in May (Christie's Images)

Camellia flower brooch of rubies and diamonds by JAR, 2003 (Christie's Images)

Jewels for Hope will be on view at Christie’s Hong Kong April 27-28. Viewings at Four Seasons Hotel des Bergues in Geneva begin May 11. Sale: 8pm, Monday, May 14.

Related posts:

Jar in full flower: 18 rare jewels on the block in May

JAR: designer jewelry as calling card

Sex and the City: the jewelry

Back on the block: JAR topaz earrings

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Like Jean-François Fichot, Carolyn Tyler and Penny Berton both found a haven and outlet for their creative expression in Bali. Both invested a chunk of their lives developing a little design industry there, and both have since retreated somewhat to their roots.

Tyler (far right) maintains a home in Santa Barbara and Berton (left) resides on Salt Spring Island, off the coast of Vancouver.

Snake earrings of 22kt gold and pearl by Penny Berton

Both did their time with the snake. Tyler’s are chunky, sensual, well-fed. Berton’s are lean, hammered, ready to pounce or slither away quickly.

Earrings of Tahitian pearls and 22kt gold by Carolyn Tyler

Penny Berton comes from gold prospectors who met up in the northern Wild West at the turn of the century. Her grandmother met her grandfather during the Gold Rush. They never found gold, but instilled their quest and restless spirit in their offspring.

Blue emerald snake necklace by Penny Berton

Two generations later, Penny found gold herself, when she wasn’t even looking. Born in Kleinburg, Ontario, she stumbled into Bali in 1976 with a pack on her back and dreams of becoming a filmmaker.

What she found instead was an ancient jewelry-making tradition and an unexpected medium for her creative visions. Berton brings to her jewelry an appreciation for ancient Chinese, Balinese and Western mythologies.  She believes in the healing properties of the gemstones and the energy in precious metals.

Spiral snake ring of opal and 22kt gold by Carolyn Tyler

Carolyn Tyler takes a similar approach to her jewelry, but while Berton’s snakes utilize a chain weaving technique familiar to us from John Hardy’s sterling designs, Tyler sticks more to the traditionally opulent granulation of classical gold work. Her snakes are less slinky and more ornamental.

Sterling snake ring by John Hardy

But I’d put either Benton’s or Tyler’s snakes up against this stylized sterling snake ring from John Hardy, the ex-pat designer that took cottage-industry jewelry-making on the island to a whole new level – and possibly lost something in the process?

By the time this ring was produced, Hardy wasn’t doing the designing any more. He sold his company in 2007. The name “John Hardy” now refers to a global jewelry business headquartered in Hong Kong, though its design center remains in Bali.

Sterling snake bracelet with amethyst eyes by Penny Berton

Related posts:

Snakes and stones: Jean-François Fichot, ex-pat designer in Bali

Carolyn Tyler: reinventing a life in Bali

Making art and jewelry on a Caribbean island

                          

Earrings of 22kt gold and peridot by Jean-François Fichot

If you’re ever in Bali, check out Treasures Gallery in Ubud where you’ll find three primary designers – Carolyn Tyler, Penny Berton, and Jean-François Fichot, who died last year but whose jewelry designs are still represented.

Together they tell the story of a generation of artists who rebelled against the pressures and conventions of Western society and set up a jewelry design haven in this Hindu-drenched tropical paradise.

Treasures is next door to Ary’s Warung, where you’re sure to stop for a bite or sip at some point. It’s the perfect place to discover the kind of jewelry you might create if you were surrounded by Balinese temples, tropical foliage, and some of the world’s best goldsmiths.

Judging from Bali’s most successful ex-pat designers, it would probably encompass unusual gemstones, ancient mythology and goldsmithing techniques – and possibly snakes.

I have yet to encounter an ex-pat designer who landed on an Indonesian island and did not, at some point, design snake jewelry. Maybe this has something to do with the ex-pat role in Paradise? Or maybe it has to do with all the actual snakes in Bali and the ever-present possibility of encountering one:

From the tale of an encounter with deadly tree snakes in Bali on The Opinionated Diner

Jean-François was among the first rebel jewelry designers to discover Bali, settling there in 1978, after graduating from L’Ecole des Beaux Arts and roaming the world for a decade. Here is his Balinese haven as I photographed it in 2000:

Garden studio of Jean-François Fichot in Bali in 2000 (photo Cathleen McCarthy)

I went to Bali that year to profile Carolyn Tyler for a magazine and met Jean-François. I’d never heard of him but, it turned out, he had preceded Carolyn by a decade. He showed me the luscious gardens he’d been cultivating for 22 years and the treasures he’d been collaborating on with goldsmiths and gem carvers on the island. Here’s Jean-François’ take on the classic snake bracelet:

Tête à Tête bracelet of 22kt gold, sterling, carved turquoise and Columbian emerald by Jean-François Fichot

One of his collaborators was a Mexican lapidary artist who showed up at the studio while I was there and introduced himself as Pedro. Pedro Michel, famous for carving nearly life-size skulls out of gem-quality material like aquamarine, is a shaman practitioner who, last I heard, was living in Tokyo. Here they are discussing a project twelve years ago:

Jean-François Fichot collaborating with gem carver Pedro Michel in Bali in 2000 (photo Cathleen McCarthy)

(You can find more of Jean-François’ work and images of his tropical gardens on his website.)

Rings of gold, sterling, rock crystal with emerald (left) and baroque pearl by Jean-François Fichot.

Around the same time Jean-François set up camp on Bali, another restless soul landed nearby – and eventually shared a showcase with him at Treasures Gallery. This one was from Toronto and her name was Penny Berton…

                          

Bracelet (left) of amethysts and emeralds, c. 1937, by René Boivin, and two by Suzanne Belperron of amethysts, tourmalines and kunzite (center) and tourmalines, emeralds and peridot (Christie's Images)

[Update 11/27/11: René Boivin bracelet on the left sold for $245,756, more than expected, but Suzanne Belperron's design with green stones, far right, sold for $330,980, a record price for a Belperron bracelet and more than double the estimate. Further proof that Belperron's reputation is continuing to grow, along with the value of her jewelry.]

Bracelet on the left was designed by Juliette Moutard of Boivin around the time Suzanne Belperron created the two on the right. Moutard took over as chief designer at Boivin in 1931, the  year Belperron went out on her own, having working for Boivin since 1921. The bracelets have the characteristic bold, geometric style and unconventional materials for which the house of René Boivin became famous under Jeanne Boivin.

Suzanne Belperron and Juliette Moutard of the René Boivin were both rising design stars in the decade before World War II, after which gold and lavish gems became difficult, if not impossible, to come by – especially in occupied Paris.

Their bracelets show how similarly the two women were designing at the time, even though Belperron had left Boivin several years before. Like Moutard, Belperron’s career was launched by Jeanne Boivin, who took over the firm after her husband’s death in 1917 and continued his legacy for bold innovation. Even though the Boivin jewels created in the following decades carry his name, what you’re really seeing, for the most part, is the collective, creative genius of a small group of women.

One of the bracelets by Belperron (center) is made with amethysts, tourmalines and kunzite; the other (right) has tourmalines, emeralds, and peridot. Each is estimated to sell at Christie’s Paris on November 24 for $110,000 to $165,000. (For more about upcoming jewelry auctions, visit our auction calendar.) The Boivin bracelet is expected to bring a bit more ($137,600 to $206,400). Here’s a closer look at that one:

Gold bracelet with amethysts and emeralds by René Boivin, late 1930s (Christie's Images)

Soon after designing this piece, Juliette Moutard would abandon bold, geometric work for a more naturalistic style. Unlike Belperron, who went out on her own, Moutard stayed with Boivin for the rest of her career, well into the 1970s. Boivin’s daughter Germaine joined the firm as a designer in 1938 and took over running the company after her mother retired.

Related posts:

Women who paved the way: Jeanne Poiret Boivin

Women who paved the way: Suzanne Belperron

Women who paved the way: Jeanne Toussaint of Cartier

Jewelry & watch auctions 2011

Related products: (Buying from links on this site doesn’t cost you extra but does add a few pennies to the maintenance of this blog.)

                          

Anna Torv wearing Lorraine Schwartz earrings with more than 80 carats of carved rubies at 2011 Emmy Awards

Sofia Vergara wearing Lorraine Schwartz emerald-and-diamond earrings at 2011 Emmy Awards

Aubrey Plaza wearing Lorraine Schwartz diamond cuffs and 20-carat diamond drop earrings at 2011 Emmy Awards

Elisabeth Moss in Lorraine Schwartz bronze champagne diamond earrings (and bronzed platinum diamond ring) at 2011 Emmy Awards

For the grand finale, when was the last time you saw fire opal mixed with amethyst on the red carpet – in an over-sized matching floral set? It took Heidi Klum to pull that one off:

Heidi Klum wearing Lorraine Schwartz floral earrings of fire opal, amethyst and diamonds at 2011 Emmy Awards and...

...her matching floral ring

It’s not the first time Heidi has strolled the red carpet wearing over-sized carved gems in nature-theme jewels. Here’s what she wore in 2008:

                          

She uses a combination of techniques and eco-friendly materials, with an emphasis on texture and movement. She also donates a percentage of all sales to charities such as the Komen Foundation.

How did you get involved in Reiki and how do you apply it to your jewelry designs?

When the sister of a friend found out she had leukemia, she asked for one of my necklaces and I decided to research healing stones to help her. I began cleansing my art jewelry, using sound (bells) and smudging – burning herbs and placing the stone or metal in direct contact with the smoke.

Reiki is more a process that I use after the piece is made. But being an artist opens me up to the Universe through the sheer act of creating. So in a sense, I apply a type of cleansing while I’m working. Applying Reiki after the piece is completed solidifies the healing process, at least for me.

Can you give me an example of a piece designed  with healing stones?

Waterfall (left), a collaborative piece I designed with wood turner Ed Kelle, combining his gorgeous textured, reclaimed walnut with a number of healing stones. Blue topaz helps with clarity and concentration. Labradorite protects one’s aura. Blue quartz produces a naturally balanced energy field. Apatite helps with healing, communicating and balancing energy. Smoky quartz disperses negative patterns. Aquamarine encourages the innate ability to always be prepared. And silver attracts and retains the qualities of the gemstones.

How do the other art forms and materials you work with affect your jewelry?

Sometimes a stone will spark a design – its matrix, color or shape. Sometimes it’s a material I want to work with – cement, wood or metal tubing – that brings forth the design. I prefer to use textures and materials that work with and against one another: dry wood against a shiny, “wet” stone, against cold metal. I enjoy juxtapositions.

My jewelry is formed from play and experimentation.  Each new piece becomes a bit more complex as I explore and learn.

How important is sustainability and eco-friendly material to your brand?

Extremely.  I can’t very well offer healing jewelry if collecting the materials I use causes harm to our environment or others. I make sure the wood is sustainable (re-used). I mainly purchase metals that have been recycled and I’m always dipping into my metal clippings. With the price of metal these days, I’m sure that more jewelers are re-using their scraps.

Fair Trade and “conscious” gems are harder to come by. There are few companies who can state that their gems come from mines they monitor. I buy opals from a family who owns a mine in Ethiopia and cabochons from either the mines themselves or people who cut the stones and have extensive knowledge of their origins.

If you walk into a bead store or buy online, you have no idea where the stones came from and who is mining them, how the miners are being treated or how well they’re paid. I try to be as knowledgeable as possible about the materials I use.

How does your background in fashion merchandising impact your jewelry?

I have the unusual ability to not only design but also merchandise my line. When I create a piece I take into account the amount of materials used, material prices, number of pieces in a vignette,  length of time to create, and current retail jewelry pricing.

But it really comes down to creating. If I’m feeling a particular way about the design of a piece, sometimes I throw my merchandising hat out the window and just enjoy myself.  There is a balance between the free flow of design and the merchandiser in me and I try to allow them to live together peacefully.

I recently launched Open Studio, Creative Mentoring so that I can guide other artists who want to better understand the wholesale market and how to cross into that business territory.

For more of Andrea’s creations, visit Andrea Rosenfeld Designs.

                          

The Esmerians began like many jewelry businesses that relocated to New York in the early twentieth century, bringing their expertise in the old world European jewelry trade, then passing it on to the next generation. New York is full of successful third- and fourth-generation gem and jewelry dealers, but few rose as high as Esmerian.

Rockefeller Sapphire of 62.02 carats flanked by diamonds and mounted in platinum, sold for $3,031,000 in 2001 (Chrisitie's Images)

Esmerian’s grandfather Paul worked as a lapidary in Constantinople before relocating to Paris in 1890. His son Raphael entered the business in 1919 and began pioneering the cutting and trading of colored gems as we know it. Raphael Esmerian (1903-1976) became a leading gem dealer in Europe and began traveling to New York to supply stones for Cartier.

This famous sapphire (right) provided a steady source of income for the Esmerian family over the years. Raphael Esmerian appraised the stone, then owned by John D. Rockefeller, Jr., more than once. In the 1940s, he helped Pierre Cartier recut it for a brooch. Then, in 1971, he bought it at auction himself for $170,000 and resold it.

The Rockefeller Sapphire appeared again at auction in 1980, four years after Raphael passed away, and it was his son Ralph Esmerian who bought it this time – for $1.5 million. He had it repolished to its current weight of 62 carats, set in a platinum ring, and sold. In 1988, Esmerian repurchased the stone at auction, this time for the world record price of $2,850,000, and sold it yet again.

Butterfly brooch of fancy yellow diamonds set in oxidized steel and 18k gold with articulated wings by Ralph Esmeian, maker's mark Carvin French, c. 1997, sold at Christie's in 2001 (Christie's Images)

Over the next four decades, Esmerian built up the family business, joining forces with André Chervin at Carvin French to create jeweled creatures like the yellow-diamond butterfly (above) and pink-diamond flamingos (below). He also became a renowned collector of antique jewelry and folk art. It took decades to build his business and a collection worth many millions, but it all unraveled with breathtaking speed after he offered his personal collection as collateral to buy Fred Leighton.

Art Nouveau dog collar plaque by René Lalique of enamel and gold with carved glass profile of Narcissus, c. 1900, part of the canceled 2008 sale (Christie's Images)

Flamingo brooch (detail) of pink diamonds with black diamond beaks, ruby eyes and demantoid garnet grass by Carvin French from cancelled 2008 sale (Christie's Images)

Over the  years, Esmerian acquired some beautiful jeweled objects, including several rare examples of Art Deco gem-set desk clocks and Art Nouveau jewelry like the brooch (above) designed by René Lalique. Many were offered in the Christie’s auction arranged by Merrill Lynch in 2008 to pay off some of Esmerian’s loan. Esmerian called it “a fire sale.”

Esmerian’s name was not mentioned in the catalog for that sale, titled “Rare Jewels and Gemstones: The Eye of a Collector,” but in its introduction, François Curiel, head of jewelry at Christie’s, praised the “subtle taste and eye” behind the collection.

At 6:05 pm, as the sale was about to begin, a call came in. Esmerian had convinced the court to declare Chapter 11 bankruptcy for Fred Leighton. Curiel announced from the podium that the sale would not take place. “We had a room full of 100 people, 150 more lined up to be on phone, and all the internet bidders waiting,” Curiel told me. “People were disappointed, disgusted, not happy. One guy who had flown in from Hong Kong especially to buy several pieces, left the room.”

Curiel too was disappointed but all was not lost. The next morning, an agent from the Louvre called, inquiring about buying the most famous piece in the sale: the diamond bow brooch created for Empress Eugenie, wife of Napoléon III. It had been housed in the Louvre until 1887, when it was sold at public auction by order of the Third Republic, ending up in the possession of New York socialite Caroline Astor.

Empress Eugenie brooch of old mine diamonds set in silver-topped gold, c. 1855, in original case (Christie's Images)

Christie’s now had to get approval from both Merrill Lynch and Esmerian to sell the brooch. Esmerian was not interested in selling to a private party but a museum was a different story. “He has always been very hot for museums and patrimony, conservation, public display,” Curiel told me at the time. “He likes museums. Exhibits have always been his thing.”

The Eugenie brooch, estimated at $4-6 thousand, sold to the Louvre for $10.5 million.

Everyone was happy. Merrill Lynch was happy to get twice the estimated price. Curiel, a French citizen, was happy to see a royal jewel from the French court returned to France, and Esmerian, a founder and former chairman of the Museum of American Folk Art, was happy the brooch went to the Louvre.

Negotiating the sale was complicated, given the now questionable ownership of the jewelry. “The judge could have blocked everything and held things up. After all, the brooch has been out of country for 121 years, what was another six months?” Curiel said. “But we managed to do it so quickly, the brooch ended up at the Louvre within a month.”

Page from catalog for the 1887 auction of the Diamonds of the Crown, including Empress Eugenie's brooch, then housed in the Louvre (Christie's Images)

Now it appears Esmerian was doing a little private dealing of his own, putting up the same jewelry as collateral more than once (double-pledging), and quietly selling off choice pieces without notifying his lenders, including the now infamous $10 million diamond-and-ruby Endymion butterfly brooch by Boucheron.

Looking through the 2008 catalog of Esmerian’s treasures, I can’t help mourning the jewelry itself, now dispersed among personal collections around the world and hidden from view – except for the Eugenie brooch, which was, at long last, returned to the museum from whence it came.

I would have preferred to have it all waiting in a museum display case where I could come and admire it from time to time, along with the rest of the non-millionaire masses who love beautiful, sparkly, historical things.

I suspect Esmerian signed his collection over as collateral the way people pledge their homes, when the future looks rosy, never expecting someone to take him up on it. I think he felt proprietary towards those jewels, as collectors often do, and couldn’t resist trading them on his own, as he had done all his life. He may pay for that mistake by spending the rest of his life in jail.

Related posts:

Bankruptcy sale of Ralph Esmerian’s historic jewelry

Ralph Esmerian: rise and fall of a jewelry connoisseur

Christie’s sells Fred Leighton jewels

René Lalique: ultimate art jeweler

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Ellen Barkin wearing JAR-designed earrings of Imperial topaz, rubies and diamonds (Christie's Images)

If you think of gemstones as a brand, the topaz image has been seriously tarnished over the years. It’s hard to remember sometimes that topaz is, among other things, a precious gem with a rich history.

One recent reminder were those now famous JAR-designed Imperial topaz earrings that Ellen Barkin sold at Christie’s in 2006. They resurfaced there in October, selling, once again, for nearly $700,000.

Most of us grew up seeing cheap citrine or glass labeled “topaz” as the November birthstone. Citrine is similar in color to the golden version of topaz but softer, less brilliant, and quite a bit cheaper. Citrine retails for about $20-70/carat, while golden topaz sells for about $190-700/carat.

Then there’s the ubiquitous and ever popular blue topaz. Somehow, finding out that its blue color was caused by radiation took some of the thrill out of it. Until recently, virtually all blue topaz sold in jewelry stores was irradiated, and some deeper blues were actually found to be radioactive by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

Sterling silver ring with 15-carat blue topaz with blue and white diamonds designed by Judith Ripka (courtesy QVC)

In the U.S., it’s now required that all blue topaz be tested for radiation levels. Some topaz is also made blue by diffusion – that is, treated with chemicals, then slowly heated. (For more on gem treatments, read the 2010 edition of Antoinette Matlin’s buying guide for colored stones.)

Natural blue topaz does, in fact, exist and can be quite lovely. But treated blue topaz can also be pretty and is far more affordable than other blue gems, at $5-20/carat. If you like it, buy it. Heating, and even mild forms of diffusion, are common treatments with colored stones and accepted in the jewelry trade. But if you’re paying a premium for a natural stone, you might want to get that in writing.

Platinum earrings with pink topaz, morganites and diamonds (AGTA Spectrum Awards)

Judith Ripka’s blue topaz ring (above) is part of the collection QVC introduced in September, inspired by the gem collection at the Smithsonian Institution – in Ripka’s case, the museum’s Blue Heart Diamond.

Less familiar is the beautiful pink version of topaz, which can retail for more than $2,000/carat – pricier even than fine Imperial topaz. A stunning example: these Deco-style danglers (right), by Los Angeles designer Erica Courtney, which won first place in the bridal category at the 2010 AGTA Spectrum Awards.

White topaz is also making a splash lately, as an affordable substitute for diamonds. It shows up in QVC’s Smithsonian-inspired collection as well as Scott Mikolay’s Crown Collection, worn below by actress Brittany Snow.

Related posts:

Back on the block: JAR topaz earrings

Beware: That ruby may be a glass composite

Wittelsbach-Graff diamond debuts

Copal, amber and…copal amber?

                          

Every variety of opal will be up for sale, from fiery orange Mexican to Australian boulder, black and matrix opal, milky-white Russian cacholong opal, even opalized wood. The catalog is a survey of the incredible variety of opal in the world – and the wild creativity it inspires.

There’s even a hat designed around opals, the Deep Blue Sea Hat, a mad concoction of feathers, hand-blocked wool felt, and 26 opals weighing 1,447 carats.

Dive down and have a look.

Inspired by the undersea life of Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, Australian milliner Ann Maree Willett used opals mined at Lightning Ridge and carved by Daniela L’Abbate and Christine Roussel and set by Gerd Gerold Schulz, using 320 grams of sterling silver and 18-carat gold. ”Never before have so many precious opals, of such size, been assembled into a single item of couture,” said Claudia Florian G.J.G., who is curating the auction. The hat is expected to fetch $150,000-200,000.

Other highlights include…

…this lovely brooch created by Angela Conty of 16.75ct black opal from Lightning Ridge, yellow sapphires, South Seas Keshi pearl, peridot briolettes and freshwater pearls set in 18kt gold (est. $3,500-4,500). Conty carved the opal herself. If you’d like to learn to do this, she teaches workshops.

Shell brooch of carved Russian cacholong opal (a rare, milky variety found only in Russia, near the Caspian Sea) designed by Nicholas Varney with diamonds (colorless, champagne and cognac), fire opals, orange sapphires, and spinels in 18kt gold. Est. $35-45,000.

James Currens won a first place at the 2009 AGTA Spectrum Awards for this boulder opal pendant (34.80 carats) in hand-fabricated, diamond-set platinum mount suspended from a chain of diamonds. Est. $90-110,000.

Necklace of 40 Mexican fire opals and 11.3 carats of diamonds mounted in 18kt gold. Est. $20,000-30,000.

Ring of 27.63-carat black opal in 18kt gold with 22 diamonds. Est. $70-80,000.

The Nature of Opals

Sale Date: November 10, 2010, San Francisco

Los Angeles Preview: October 1-3, 2010 (highlights only)

New York Preview: October 16-18, 2010 (highlights only)

San Francisco Preview: November 6-9, 2010 (Full preview)

All Photos: Courtesy of Bonhams & Butterfields

For more information on the sale, visit their website.

                          

Star of Bombay, 182 carats, bequeathed by Mary Pickford to the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History

Rubies and sapphires are actually the same mineral, corundum. Both have long enjoyed favor in high places, appearing in royal jewels since ancient times.

Hindus offered sapphires to the god Krishna so they could be reborn as emperors.

Europeans associated sapphires’ heavenly blue with eternity and believed it would prevent poverty, make a stupid man wise and an irritable one good-natured.

The star sapphire, said to be a spark from the Star of Bethlehem, was particularly coveted, its three crossed rays representing faith, hope and destiny. This one, weighing 182 carats, has to be one of  finest in the world and must be seen to be believed – which you can do at the Smithsonian’s Natural History Museum.

Here’s another example of that most-coveted shade of sapphire, deep royal blue, this 180.86-carat Ceylon sapphire is surrounded by diamonds – and up for grabs next month if you happen to have a quarter mill to spare. Designed by Mouwad, it’s expected to fetch $250-350,000 at Christi’e Dubai in October.[UPDATE 10/20/10: Make that a mill. The bracelet sold for $932,500.]

A matching pendant/brooch (part of a parure but sold separately) is expected to go fo $180-250,000. [UPDATE 10/27/10: sold for $296,500]

That deep blue is what we associate with the finest, precious sapphire but the gem actually comes in every color of the rainbow – as you can see from this sampling from that world-class collection at the Smithsonian.

Ring of fancy colored sapphires in 18kt gold by Klaus Spies (spiesjewelrydesign.com)

Kashmir and Burma once produced the finest blue sapphires, but the majority these days come from Australia and, most recently, Madagascar.

Slightly paler but still valuable are those from Sri Lanka, the earliest source—along with India—of this historic gem. Small sapphires are being mined in Montana as well.

Etruscans were the first to use sapphires, in the seventh century B.C., and by the Roman era, they were known as the “king” of all gemstones. Easy to see why.