Lot Essay
US$1,200,000-1,500,000
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THE SULTRY, TROPICAL, SOUTH AMERICAN COUNTRY OF COLOMBIA HAS LONG BEEN THE PREEMINENT PRODUCER OF GEM-QUALITY EMERALDS. PRIZED FOR THEIR TRANSPARENCY, SUPERIOR CRYSTAL STRUCTURE AND FIRE, THE RAREST AND MOST EXPENSIVE EMERALDS IN THE WORLD COME FROM THE THREE MAIN COLOMBIAN MINING AREAS OF MUZO, COSCUEZ AND CHIVOR. THE ORIGINAL EL CHIVOR DEPOSITS DATE BACK TO THE EARLY 1500'S AND WAS MINED BY NATIVE INDIGENOUS TRIBES, WHO IN TURN CREATED OPULENT GOLD AND EMERALD ENCRUSTED TREASURES.
NEWS OF THE COLOMBIAN JEWELS ULTIMATELY LURED IN THE SPANISH CONQUISTADORS: ADVENTURERS AT THE SERVICE OF THE SPANISH EMPIRE. THEY CONQUERED TERRITORIES, OPENED TRADE ROUTES AND SUBSEQUENTLY INVADED AND RAVAGED LANDS OF ITS NATURAL RESOURCES. COLONIZING MUCH OF THE WORLD FOR SPAIN IN THE 15TH, 16TH AND 17TH CENTURIES, THE SPANISH INVASION INTRODUCED THE WORLD TO HIGH-QUALITY, LUSH GREEN EMERALDS WHICH WERE USED TO ADORN THE EUROPEAN MONARCHS.
THE MAJORITY OF THESE EXCEPTIONAL GEMSTONES EMERGED FROM A BLACK, SOOTY, CARBONACEOUS SHALE THAT CONSTITUTES THE PRIMARY HOST ROCK OF THE AREA THAT INCLUDES THE FAMOUS MINES OF MUZO AND CHIVOR. RICH IN CHROMIUM AND VANADIUM, THE CAUSE OF EMERALD'S INTENSE GREEN COLOUR, THESE CHEMICALS CONTRIBUTES TO THE GEMSTONE'S UNIQUE VISUAL APPEAL. HOWEVER, IT HAS BEEN SUGGESTED THAT THE PRESENCE OF HIGH LEVELS OF CHROMIUM AND VANADIUM IN COMBINATION WITH DIMINISHED AMOUNTS OF IRON IN EMERALD'S ATOMIC STRUCTURE CAUSE INTERNAL CRYSTALLOGRAPHIC STRESS RESULTING IN FRACTURES THAT CHARACTERISTICALLY LOWER THE CLARITY OF THESE INTENSELY GREEN GEMS. CONSEQUENTLY, HIGH CLARITY EMERALDS ARE EXTREMELY RARE AND HIGHLY PRIZED.
LOT 1773, A PAIR OF EMERALD, COLOURED DIAMOND AND DIAMOND EAR PENDANTS, IS AN EXEMPLARY SPECIMEN OF THE DISTINGUISHED COLOMBIAN GEMSTONES. SUCH COLOUR AND QUALITY COMMONLY REFERRED TO AS "OLD-MINE" EMERALDS, REPRESENT A UNIQUE TIME IN COLOMBIA'S HISTORY AND ITS CONTRIBUTION TO THE WORLD. ACCOMPANIED BY SUCH HIGH CLARITY, THIS PAIR OF EAR PENDANTS IS TRULY AN EXTRAORDINARY FIND.
AN IMPORTANT PAIR OF EMERALD, COLOURED DIAMOND AND DIAMOND EAR PENDANTS, BY VAN CLEEF & ARPELS
Details
AN IMPORTANT PAIR OF EMERALD, COLOURED DIAMOND AND DIAMOND EAR PENDANTS, BY VAN CLEEF & ARPELS
EACH DETACHABLE PENDANT SET WITH A PEAR-SHAPED EMERALD WEIGHING APPROXIMATELY 13.20 AND 12.18 CARATS, WITHIN A MARQUISE, BRILLIANT AND PEAR-SHAPED DIAMOND SURROUND, TO THE DIAMOND CLUSTER SURMOUNT, EACH SET TO THE CENTRE WITH A BRILLIANT-CUT FANCY INTENSE YELLOW DIAMOND WEIGHING APPROXIMATELY 3.09 AND 3.03 CARATS, MOUNTED IN 18K GOLD, 6.2 CM LONG, WITH FRENCH ASSAY MARK FOR GOLD, IN BLUE LEATHER VAN CLEEF & ARPELS CASE
SIGNED AND WITH MAKER'S MARK FOR VAN CLEEF & ARPELS, NO. SL266
ACCOMPANIED BY REPORT NO. CS 51336 A & B DATED 6 SEPTEMBER 2012 FROM THE AMERICAN GEMOLOGICAL LABORATORIES STATING THAT BASED ON AVAILABLE GEMOLOGICAL INFORMATION, IT IS THE OPINION OF THE LABORATORY THAT THE EMERALDS WEIGHING 13.20 AND 12.18 CARAT ARE NATURAL, THE ORIGIN OF THIS MATERIAL WOULD BE CLASSIFIED AS CLASSIC COLOMBIA, CLARITY ENHANCEMENT: FAINT; ALSO ACCOMPANIED BY AN APPENDIX STATING THAT THE EMERALDS ARE SINGULARLY DISTINGUISHED AND TOGETHER MAKE A PAIR OF UNIQUE RARITY. BOTH EXHIBIT AN INTENSE AND SATURATED GREEN COLOUR THAT IS REPRESENTATIVE OF TOP-QUALITY STONE FROM COLOMBIA. EMERALDS OF SUCH COLOUR AND QUALITY ARE COMMONLY REFERRED TO AS "OLD-MINE" EMERALDS AND ARE CONSIDERED TO HAVE ORIGINATED FROM THE MUZO MINING DISTRICT IN WESTERN FLANK OF THE CORDILLERA ORIENTAL. AGL HAS DEVELOPED A MATCH PAIR RATING THAT DEFINES THE COMPARATIVE SIMILARITY IN APPEARANCE OF TWO GEMSTONES AND REFLECTS THE UNIFORMITY OF ALL QUALITY PARAMETERS. THESE TWO EMERALDS DESCRIBED RECEIVED A RATING OF EXCELLENT. THE TOTAL COMBINATION OF QUALITY ELEMENTS, ORIGIN DETERMINATION, MATCH RATING, AS WELL AS IMPORTANT EAR PENDANTS, REPRESENTS A PARTICULARLY RARE EXAMPLE OF A VERY FINE EMERALD AND DIAMOND JEWELLERY
TWO DUPLICATE REPORTS NOS. 11182466 AND 13104080 DATED 17 JULY 2000 AND 16 JANUARY 2004 FROM THE GEMOLOGICAL INSTITUTE OF AMERICA STATING THAT THE 3.09 AND 3.03 CARAT DIAMONDS ARE FANCY INTENSE YELLOW, NATURAL COLOUR, INTERNALLY FLAWLESS AND VS2 CLARITY RESPECTIVELY
PLEASE NOTE THAT TWO CERTIFICATES ARE MORE THAN 3 YEARS OLD AND MIGHT REQUIRE AN UPDATE
(2)
EACH DETACHABLE PENDANT SET WITH A PEAR-SHAPED EMERALD WEIGHING APPROXIMATELY 13.20 AND 12.18 CARATS, WITHIN A MARQUISE, BRILLIANT AND PEAR-SHAPED DIAMOND SURROUND, TO THE DIAMOND CLUSTER SURMOUNT, EACH SET TO THE CENTRE WITH A BRILLIANT-CUT FANCY INTENSE YELLOW DIAMOND WEIGHING APPROXIMATELY 3.09 AND 3.03 CARATS, MOUNTED IN 18K GOLD, 6.2 CM LONG, WITH FRENCH ASSAY MARK FOR GOLD, IN BLUE LEATHER VAN CLEEF & ARPELS CASE
SIGNED AND WITH MAKER'S MARK FOR VAN CLEEF & ARPELS, NO. SL266
ACCOMPANIED BY REPORT NO. CS 51336 A & B DATED 6 SEPTEMBER 2012 FROM THE AMERICAN GEMOLOGICAL LABORATORIES STATING THAT BASED ON AVAILABLE GEMOLOGICAL INFORMATION, IT IS THE OPINION OF THE LABORATORY THAT THE EMERALDS WEIGHING 13.20 AND 12.18 CARAT ARE NATURAL, THE ORIGIN OF THIS MATERIAL WOULD BE CLASSIFIED AS CLASSIC COLOMBIA, CLARITY ENHANCEMENT: FAINT; ALSO ACCOMPANIED BY AN APPENDIX STATING THAT THE EMERALDS ARE SINGULARLY DISTINGUISHED AND TOGETHER MAKE A PAIR OF UNIQUE RARITY. BOTH EXHIBIT AN INTENSE AND SATURATED GREEN COLOUR THAT IS REPRESENTATIVE OF TOP-QUALITY STONE FROM COLOMBIA. EMERALDS OF SUCH COLOUR AND QUALITY ARE COMMONLY REFERRED TO AS "OLD-MINE" EMERALDS AND ARE CONSIDERED TO HAVE ORIGINATED FROM THE MUZO MINING DISTRICT IN WESTERN FLANK OF THE CORDILLERA ORIENTAL. AGL HAS DEVELOPED A MATCH PAIR RATING THAT DEFINES THE COMPARATIVE SIMILARITY IN APPEARANCE OF TWO GEMSTONES AND REFLECTS THE UNIFORMITY OF ALL QUALITY PARAMETERS. THESE TWO EMERALDS DESCRIBED RECEIVED A RATING OF EXCELLENT. THE TOTAL COMBINATION OF QUALITY ELEMENTS, ORIGIN DETERMINATION, MATCH RATING, AS WELL AS IMPORTANT EAR PENDANTS, REPRESENTS A PARTICULARLY RARE EXAMPLE OF A VERY FINE EMERALD AND DIAMOND JEWELLERY
TWO DUPLICATE REPORTS NOS. 11182466 AND 13104080 DATED 17 JULY 2000 AND 16 JANUARY 2004 FROM THE GEMOLOGICAL INSTITUTE OF AMERICA STATING THAT THE 3.09 AND 3.03 CARAT DIAMONDS ARE FANCY INTENSE YELLOW, NATURAL COLOUR, INTERNALLY FLAWLESS AND VS2 CLARITY RESPECTIVELY
PLEASE NOTE THAT TWO CERTIFICATES ARE MORE THAN 3 YEARS OLD AND MIGHT REQUIRE AN UPDATE
(2)
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