Rings

18ct (XRF tested) Rose gold and gems Retro dress ring centered by an oval domed mount set with nineteen brilliant cut, single cut and old cut natural diamonds, set to the sides with eighteen cabochon cut baguette and tapered baguette shaped rubies, assessed as manmade.

This ring is a microcosm of its time. Manmade gems were prized in the Art Deco and Retro periods as new, amazing and fascinating technological achievements. They were regarded as avant - garde and chic by the daring fashion leaders, not inferior gems. Princess Margaret, always a leader of the chic and innovative, had several jewels set with manmade rubies in her collection, Manmade gems allowed jewellers to match sets perfectly for colour, and rubies such as these rivalled natural Burmese rubies for glowing colour. As much effort was spent on these jewels as on jewels with natural gems . The cuts of these rubies would have been expensive at this time. These were unusual cuts, well cut and cut to fit the mount. Such cuts were done with manmade and natural gems for high quality jewels. People wore these new manmade gems as the natural gems with pride and self confidence. They have become a collector’s item in their own right now as when they were created.