Friday, July 26, 2013

134 Carat Sapphire Brooch to Highlight Alexandre Reza Exhibit at Sotheby's

By Daniel Ford, Web Editor
Posted on July 26, 2013
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134 Carat Sapphire Brooch to Highlight Alexandre Reza Exhibit at Sotheby's
Alexandre Reza untreated Ceylon sapphire brooch featuring a 134 ct. large oval sapphire mounted on a gold clip set with 14 round diamonds 17 cts. t.w., a 1 ct. pear-shaped diamond, yellow diamonds, and 14 pear shaped sapphires 8 ct. t.w. from 1980 (Photos courtesy of Sotheby's
A 134 ct. sapphire brooch will highlight the Alexandre Reza exhibit set to debut in November at Sotheby’s in New York City.
Titled “The Extraordinary Jewelry of Alexandre Reza,” the exhibition will highlight both the historic and contemporary works of the Paris-based jewelry designer. New pieces designed by Olivier Reza, son of now-retired Alexandre, will include earrings featuring old mine Colombian emeralds set in baguette diamonds and a natural pearl necklace.
“My family and I are honored to partner with Sotheby’s and share both the Alexandre Reza archives and new creations with jewelry collectors around the world,” said Olivier Reza in a statement. “Carefully curated, this exhibition will showcase my father’s legacy as a jeweler, and the work that we create today in his honor.”

Platinum earrings composed of four Columbian emeralds more than 51 cts., framed with over 14 cts. of diamond baguettes.
The collection will be on public view  Nov. 2–14 in New York City. The exhibition will travel to Sotheby’s global offices in 2014, including London, Doha, and Beijing.

Natural pearl necklace set with a pear-shaped pearl of 29 cts. at its center, a fancy intense yellow diamond of 2.5 cts. and 3 rose-cut diamonds 12 cts. t.w.

Monday, July 22, 2013

Must See This Year!

55 Carat Kimberley Diamond Goes on Display in New York City

By Rob Bates, Senior Editor
Posted on July 17, 2013
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The famed 55 ct. Kimberley Diamond is making its first public appearance at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City this month.
The stone, which is on loan from the Bruce F. Stuart Trust, will be on display in the Morgan Memorial Hall of Gems through at least June 2014, a museum spokeswoman says.

The Kimberley Diamond
The 55.08-ct. champagne-colored gem, described by the exhibit's curator as "virtually flawless," is historically important because it was found in the 19th century at the Kimberley Mine in South Africa, also known as “the Big Hole,” one of the first diamond mines of the modern era.
The Kimberley Diamond was discovered as a 490 ct. crystal, and it was cut into a 70 ct. gem in 1921. The stone was given its present emerald cut in 1958 to improve its brilliancy, according to the museum.

Thursday, July 18, 2013

Elizabeth Taylor Love~ JCK Re-Post

More Elizabeth Taylor Jewelry Coming Up for Auction

By Rob Bates, Senior Editor
Posted on July 16, 2013
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It turns out that Elizabeth Taylor had a few more jewels to be auctioned off.
Beverly Hills, Calif.-based Julien Auctions, which specializes in celebrity memorabilia, will auction off two of the noted actress and jewelry collector’s pieces in October.
Among the items scheduled to go up for bids is an 18k yellow gold necklace and earring set signed Zorab that features citrine and peridot. It has a $10,000 to $15,000 estimate.

18k yellow gold necklace and earring set featuring citrine and peridot (Photos courtesy of Julien Auctions)
Another item is a bracelet Taylor wore in the movie Cleopatra, with five dangling lotus blossoms on chain and beaded fringes, and a clasp opening. Its estimate is $1,000 to $2,000.

Five dangling lotus blossoms on chain and beaded fringes 
The auction also will include the headdress Taylor wore in Cleopatra. According to Reuters, the items were the property of an unidentified former employee of Taylor’s.
In December 2011, the auction of Taylor’s jewels at Christie’s set numerous records.

Tuesday, July 16, 2013

GOLD LOVE!!

I was recently invited to check out an amazing jewelry manufacturing company in Louisiana. I was treated like a Queen, with the best Cajun food and drinks and southern hospitality. I came home with a full belly and tons of new, exciting information. One of the highlights of the trip was that I got to hold a gold bar valued at over a half a million dollars!

The Fabled Wittelsbach Blue

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/07/fashion/07DIAMONDS.html?pagewanted=1

Thursday, July 11, 2013

Arkansas, Here I Come!

Roadtrip! Who's coming diamond hunting with me??

2.95 Carat Diamond Found at Arkansas Park

By Rob Bates, Senior Editor
Posted on July 9, 2013
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2.95 Carat Diamond Found at Arkansas Park
2.95 ct. brown diamond at Arkansas’ famous Crater of Diamonds State Park.
On July 4, Terry Staggs of Richmond, Ky., unearthed a 2.95 ct. brown diamond at Arkansas’ famous Crater of Diamonds State Park.
The champagne rough stone is the biggest of all the 304 diamonds found so far this year at the park, according to a park statement. Since the stone was discovered on Independence Day, Staggs dubbed it the Patriot Diamond.
The park, open since 1972 in Murfreesboro, Ark., lets visitors rummage for diamonds and keep what they find.
The diamond “appears to be a complete crystal and is shaped like a shield,” said park interpreter Waymon Cox in a statement. “It’s about the size of an English pea and has as a golden brown metallic appearance.”
Staggs took advantage of the long weekend to search for stones at the park. The diamond caught his attention after he’d been surface-searching for about two and a half hours.
“Sunny weather conditions on July 4th were perfect for this sparkler to catch Mr. Staggs’ attention as he searched,” said Cox. “Mr. Staggs’ gem was found in gravel on the surface of the East Drain area. Sunlight reflecting off the diamond made it stand out from the other stones."
While the value of the Patriot Diamond is still undetermined, it would be tough the beat the 2.44 ct. F VS1 stone discovered at the park in 2012. That diamond was valued at more than $21,000.
Perhaps the park’s most notable recent discovery is the D-flawless Strawn-Wagner Diamond. The 3.03 ct. stone, which was found in 1998, was eventually cut to a 1.09 ct. AGS Triple Zero by Lazare Kaplan. It was subsequently purchased by the state of Arkansas and is currently on display at the Crater of Diamonds visitor center.