Jewelry

6.5 Ct. Yellow Mine-Cut Diamond Ring, ca. 1900

Appraisal: 6.5 Ct. Yellow Mine Cut Diamond Ring, ca. 1900

Transcript

GUEST: My grandmother bought it many, many years ago. I've been keeping it in the bottom of my sock drawer. My husband finally

said that he thought it probably deserved to be in the safe deposit box, so that's where it's been recently.

APPRAISER: Personally, I think I would agree with him.

GUEST: Okay.

APPRAISER: It's a very pretty piece. What do you know specifically about the stone or the setting?

GUEST: I know that the stone is a yellow diamond, and that's really all that I know.

APPRAISER: Did you have the piece appraised for any estate purposes when you inherited it?

GUEST: No, I inherited it from my mother, who inherited it from her mother.

APPRAISER: It's a really beautiful cut, and it's what we refer to as an old mine cut diamond. It has fewer facets than the round brilliant that we know and love today. But in this instance, you have really beautiful fire. And the piece displays a lot of different colors within the stones, because the facet sizes are nice and large. It is a really pretty piece, just the center stone as is. And what's nice is, it's not in a yellow mounting or setting that would amplify the yellow. It's actually in a platinum-and-diamond Edwardian setting that complements it beautifully. It's a beautiful setting, most likely American made. Now, the center stone is about 6.5 carats. It's something that you might consider having certified by the G.I.A. to see how yellow it is, or another company that might do a certification. You have no idea at this time what the stone is worth?

GUEST: No.

APPRAISER: And you and your husband, when we just asked as a guesstimate, you were...

GUEST: Yeah, I figured a couple of thousand, and he said probably closer to $5,000.

APPRAISER: Okay. Well, if we were talking per carat, that might be appropriate. At this moment in time... It's a beautiful ring, probably closer to about $10,000 to $12,000 per carat. At auction.

GUEST: I beg your pardon?

APPRAISER: Yes. If it were a piece that were to come in to auction, you're looking at an auction estimate of about $70,000 to about $90,000.

GUEST(choking up): Oh, my.

APPRAISER: It's stunning.

GUEST: Thank you so much.

APPRAISER: You're very welcome.

GUEST: Oh, my...

APPRAISER: Thank you for bringing it in.

GUEST: Thank you.

APPRAISER: Do you have any other questions?

GUEST: Um, do you have a tissue?

APPRAISER (laughing): Unfortunately, no. I'm so sorry.