Opal Collectors Items
Famous Opals, Museum Artefacts, Name Stones & Collectable Jewels
European Collections:
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The Crown of the Holy Roman Empire also known as the Crown of Charlemagne was made in the 2nd half of the 10th century and now resides in Vienna at the Schatzkammer Museum of Art History. Originally set with various precious gems including the most legendary stone of Medieval Europe the 'Orphanus' Opal as referred to by Albertus Magnus. Dubbed the 'Stone of wisdom' it was thought to represent the chosen of God. The translucent white opal with an intense red flash glowed in the dark. It disappeared from the front panel of the crown under the reign of Charles IV in about 1350. |
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The Russian Imperial Crown c.962 AD, containing Hungarian Opals is also on view at the Vienna Schatzkammer Museum in Austria.
This reliquary statue of Lady St Foy at Conques in France dates to the late 10th century. She is a wooden figure covered with sheets of gold and silver, wearing a crown and earrings decorated with granulation and filigree. Her bodice is set with numerous stones; cameos, pearls and gems. The gems including Opals are uncut stones typical of the Middle Ages. |
The 'Grenville' Jewel (English c.1635-40). A richly enamelled gold locket containing the miniature portrait by David Des Granges (signed DDG) of the Royalist hero, Sir Bevil Grenville (1596-1643), who was killed whilst leading the Cornish army at the Battle of Lansdown, near Bath. The jewel mentioned in his widow's will in 1647, remained in the family until the late 19th century. This exquisite rarity offers sound evidence of English court taste on the eve of the Civil War. Interestingly the piece is interspersed with emeralds, rubies and diamonds in rubbed-in settings, but the opals are claw set to allow light through them.
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The Sun Jewel pictured was worn by the British maritime hero Sir Francis Drake (1543-1596). At the centre of this hat jewel is a ruby engraved with an intaglio orb, surrounded by Opals within a diamond and Opal border.This is framed by straight and curved rays alternately enameled red and set with rubies. On the back of the jewel is a miniature of Elizabeth I of |
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This jewelled pendant is crowned by 5 crystal opals. A white hand grasping a laurel wreath is flanked by dragons emerging from cornucopiae all framing a crystal reliquary containing a curl of Queen Mary's dark brown hair. Mary Stuart Queen of Scots (1542-1587), though she has not been canonised by the Catholic Church, many consider her a martyr, and there are relics of her. The pendant was a gift by Queen Mary to one of her closest supporters James Gordon ancestor of the Earls & Marquesses of Aberdeen. Ever since it has been worn by the reigning Marchioness of Aberdeen. |
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This lapis lazuli drinking cup sits on a stem formed by two gold dragons with Fire Opal eyes, four dolphins and a white enamelled putto. It forms part of a collection of ceremonial vessels in the treasure of the Grand Dauphin - Louis of Bourbon (1661-1711). On display at the Prado Gallery in Madrid it is reputedly the work of the Saracchi brothers, circa.1600. This piece is important as a rare early example of the use of Opal from the newly discovered American continent. |
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| Countess Elizabeth of Exeter (1681-1723) wore this 'Dragonfly' pin in her hair. Most likely made by a local jeweller, set with cabochon opals, rubies, garnets and diamonds, it is enamelled on the reverse. This lovely piece now resides in the Museum of London. |  |
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This attractive necklace of Opals mounted in brilliants originally belonged to the Maréchale de Rochambeau. Made towards the end of the eighteenth century it is exemplary of the care and attention given to mounting Opals; imitation Opals were also made but usually in pinks and mauves which are unknown to mineralogy. During the eighteenth century women of high rank in society were sure to include coloured stones in their list of jewels. Opals were greatly appreciated for their rare colouring and especially preferred in the demi-parures intended for daytime wearing rather than by candlelight. |
At the height of his power Napoleon Bonaparte presented his first wife Empress Josephine de Beauharnais with a blazing red Opal known as the ‘Burning of Troy’. The stone is reputed to have had a dark body tone and weighing in around 700 carats it was unquestionably the most valuable Opal in the world and arguably the most highly prized gemstone at that time.
The Crown jewels of France; Napoleon Bonaparte, for his wedding to the Austrian archduchess Marie Louise on the 2nd of April, 1810, commissioned two splendid parures from the jeweller Etienne Nitot et Fils: one of emeralds and diamonds, the other of opals and diamonds. Both were to become part of the young empress’s private jewellery collection, the former is now in the Louvre.
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Chief amongst the royal regalia of Norway is the King's Crown: made for King Carl Johan in 1818 by goldsmith Olof Wihlborg of Stockholm. This colourful golden corona clausa is lavishly set with gems; foremost is a large green tourmaline, numerous amethysts, chrysoprases and pearls are accompanied by an emerald, a ruby, a topaz, an alexandrite and an Opal. Intricate gold work surrounds the gems in the form of wreaths of oak leaves and vines of strawberry leaves. The gem laden yellow gold contrasts magnificently against the red velvet lining and the Latin cross atop the blue enameled orb at the crowns crest. |
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At the end of the nineteenth century some grande dames, but mostly women of the theatre and courtesans were attracted by the bizarre and the seductively twisted new style of jewellery. Above all it was the snake theme that fascinated the fin de siècle, which was attracted by its evil portents. It formed the chief motif of the Fouquet bracelet made in 1906 after a drawing by Czech Art Nouveau artist Alphonse Mucha for actress Sarah Bernhardt. Bernhardt wore it in her stage role as Cleopatra. The gold bracelet and attached finger-ring feature Opals accompanied by enamel, rubies, emeralds and diamonds. |
The famous French jewellery houses of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries; Lalique, Fouquet, Vever, and those still operating in Paris today Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels, Mauboussin, Marchak and the newest entrant Dior have all featured opal in their designs. The stones were and are still often selected and cut by in-house lapidaries.
Cartier made two pearl necklaces with opal and diamond clasps for the late Barbara Woolworth Hutton. One with two-rows of golden pearls and a multi-red coloured opal which she often wore with her fabulous ruby and diamond tiara. The other was an important strand of pearls once worn by Queen Marie Antoinette of France and now sporting a beautiful Black Opal (pictured).
At the Musee d’Orsay in Paris can be seen a magnificent objet d’art, a carved Boulder specimen c.1900 depicting ‘A Pantheon of gods seated in the clouds above Mount Olympus’.
A 77 carat Opal having belonged to Louis XVIII is kept in the National Museum of Natural History in Paris.
The Musée de Minéralogie, Paris, possesses a very fine Opal carved into a bust of Louis XIII's likeness as a child.
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This stately chalice is carved from Opal matrix and the urn and several others like it are decorated with Hungarian Opals, they are on view at the Schatzkammer Museum in Vienna, Austria. Such vessels have been consecrated and used as religious objects by Roman and Byzantine aristocracy.
Other opal bearing articles worthy of mention include a collection of rings at the Schatzkammer Naturhistorisches Museum in Vienna and a necklace belonging to Princess Isabella of Hungary held at the Nemzeti Muzeum in Budapest.
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This decorative parure (matched set) was a gift from the city of Budapest to Princess Stephanie of Belgium on the occasion of her marriage to Crown Prince Rudolph on the 10th of May, 1881. After the death of Archduke Rudolph, his widow remarried and returned this parure to the imperial treasury in Vienna. Created by the Egger Brothers of Hungary and now housed at the Schatzkammer Museum of Art History in Vienna; Princess Stephanie’s (1864-1945) collection includes belts, bracelets, eardrops, headpins, necklaces and no fewer than ten opal brooches.
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The Calouste Gulbenkian commissioned 146 jewelled artworks by Rene Lalique between 1895-1910. Lalique’s creative imagination and his preoccupation with beauty saw him select Opals as his gemstone of choice repeatedly in dozens of these jewels. This is an unrivalled collection of works by one of the greatest figures in the history of art. Not only a representative set of the multifaceted work of Lalique, the collection is a testament to the vibrant colours, versatile qualities and mesmerizing effects of Opal. |
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The 'Butterfly’ also known as the ‘Red Admiral’, this famous Lightning Ridge Black Opal of 51 carats was set by Percy Marks jewellers of Australia who sold it in 1930. Marks since resold it to an eminent Scottish collector and it remains in the family collection. Roughly the shape and colour of the British Red Admiral butterfly, it was found in 1920. The exact field of origin remains a mystery, either the diggings at New Rush or Phone Line, not far from the discovery site of 'Pride of Australia' and 'Empress' stones. The 'Butterfly' was given supreme pride of place by Ted Murphy, one of the best judges of opal at the time.
A 203 carat Andamooka Crystal Opal and diamond necklet with matching earrings were presented to Queen Elizabeth II by the South Australian government to mark the occasion of her first visit to Australia in 1954. The rough stone which became the 'Andamooka' Opal, also known as the 'Queen's Opal', was procured and cut by Altmann & Cherny.
Among the Royal collection of Jewels at Sandringham House are many pieces featuring Opals. Some are the work of the famous Russian jeweller Faberge whose workshops also carved and polished the gems they set; many in the likeness of animals, fish, birds, dogs and cats, a use for which Opal is well suited.
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A large silver cigar box designed by famous British Arts & Crafts jeweller Archibald Knox for Arthur Lasenby of Liberty & Co. resides in London's Victoria and Albert Museum. A large Boulder Opal takes pride of place on the lid of this Celtic Revivalist masterpiece which dates to the first decade of the twentieth century. |
| Fish by Cartier London 1962 |
The Cartier Collection |
Kingfisher 1960, Black Opal, ruby, sapphires & diamonds |
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At the heart of the House of Cartier's heritage policy since 1989, the Cartier Collection includes more than 1,300 pieces, acquired at auction and from private individuals. The collection has been displayed in major retrospectives at internationally renowned museums. Catalogued using Cartier's own archive documents, it illustrates the changes in design styles and techniques in the Maison's creations. Several important pieces in the collection, dating from the 1930's to the 1960's, reveal an affinity with Opal. |
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In 1967 internationally renowned sculptor, silversmith and jewellery designer Stuart Devlin started making unique decorative Easter eggs for which he is well known; the egg he made in 1974 contained an Opal mosaic and is a renowned objet d’virtu. Devlin gifted his decoratively jewelled eggs to his patrons, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II amongst them. |
Eastern Collections:
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Since ancient times the most luxurious and beauteous decorative arts and adornments have been attributed to the |
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American Collections:
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When Black Opal was discovered in 1903 nothing like it had been seen before....the Lightning Ridge gems were so strikingly beautiful they took the world by surprise. By the 1930's famous Opals had captured the hearts and minds of the world's richest nation and her most wealthy citizens....
The ‘Fire Queen’ or 'Dunstan’s Stone' was Lightning Ridge’s first famous gem, found in 1906 by Charlie Dunstan at the Angledool diggings north of Lightning Ridge. Weighing in at about 6.5 oz. or nearly 900 carats, this was the largest gem nobby found to date. After being originally sold for a mere £100, the stone changed hands several times, each new buyer finding it difficult to sell. Black Opal was still not well understood by the market and the industry still only in its early infancy. |
The Jeweller & Watchmaker, |
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This Opal 'Parrot' is carved from a single piece of white Opal and perched in a miniature yellow gold cage. Residing in a private |
| Made by the St. Petersburg workmasters of Faberge around the turn of the twentieth century. This translucent white jade cigarette case is bordered with an enamelled gold rim and features an Opal cameo of Tsarina Alexandra Feodorvna and her daughters Olga and Tatiana. The Opal cameo is enclosed in a frame of diamond leaf design and the case is operated by a pearl thumb-piece. This magnificent heirloom was provided to an American collection by prominent New York art dealers Hammer Galleries. |  |
Tiffany of New York was one of the first jewellers to use Black Opals which were discovered at Lightning Ridge in 1902, Louis Comfort Tiffany’s dragonfly brooch was first shown at the 1904 St. Louis Exposition. It resides in the Tiffany Permanent Collection.
A Pocketful of Gems...
The ‘Black Prince’ aka. 'Harlequin Prince' a famous Black Opal of 180 carats, was found in 1915 at the Phone Line field in Lightning Ridge by Ted Brown and Tom Urwin, it was procured in England by the American Museum of Natural History in New York.
The ‘Pride of Australia’ aka.'Red Emperor' (pictured) was found in the same pocket as the ‘Black Prince’ and 7 other big named stones. It is a double sided gem of 225 carats which went to the Forest Lawn Museum USA to whose president it was sold in 1954 for a reputed ₤150,000.
The same Phone Line patch also produced the Empress of Australia a 110 carat flag patterned gem and the largest stone of all was the 'Flamingo' Opal weighing in at a whopping quarter of a pound or 800 carats. In 1919 Ernie
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Paulding Farnham was design director for Tiffany & Co. from 1891 until 1902. Farnham was responsible for producing a series of exquisite silverware items in a range of cultural styles: Celtic motifs characterise the 'Viking' vase (pictured left) studded with numerous Crystal Opal cabochons and orbs and decorated with enamels. Designed for the 1901 Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo. Based on Navajo pottery this vase (pictured right) is embellished with Boulder Opals, turquoise and freshwater pearls. It was designed for the 1900 Paris Exposition. A silver and ebony punch bowl with swinging handles is set with four Black Opals in the central band around its body. Completed in late 1902 it was commissioned by a client who had admired the 'Viking' vase on show in Buffalo. An amazing silver and copper Aztec Indian bowl dates to August 31,1905. Featuring Boulder Opal matrix carved and inlaid into generous swinging handles. |
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This Louis Comfort Tiffany Indian-style pendant of crystal opals, sapphires, topazes, pearls, demantoid garnets and chrysoberyl was made about 1915. This spectacular piece is now on display in the Hall of Gems at New York’s American Museum of History.
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An Inkwell in the Art Nouveau mode, silver holloware featuring champlevé enamel and cabochon Boulder Opals. Made by Marcus & Company, New York, after 1900. In the collection of the Philadelphia Museum of Art having been donated by friends of the museum in 1976. |
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The 'Flame Queen' a renowned 263.18 carat Lightning Ridge Black Opal found in 1915 by miners Jack Philips, Walter Bradley and “Irish” Joe Hegarty. The most unusual color pattern of this opal is best described as having the appearance of a fried egg—gemologically known as the “eye-of-opal” effect—created when opal infills a cavity. The 'Flame Queen' is the best known gem of this type. Polished as a broad, pear-shaped buff top cabochon, its flashes change from vivid red to fiery bronze when viewed from different angles and in different light. |  |
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Raymond C Yard was a favourite jeweller to celebrities and America's high society. In 1958 he sold his company to his employees. The young proprietors at Yard Inc cultivated new clients such as the du Pont and the Firestone families. Yard made significant new stock acquisitions in the 1960's with the purchase of the 43 carat 'Sydney Queen' and two other pear shaped Black Opals. In 1967 the three exceptional stones were sold to the du Pont family. The Black Opal ring (pictured) is set in platinum with diamonds and was commissioned in 1970 by Samuel Hallock du Pont. |
This 'Peacock' brooch sporting a 30.92 carat Black Opal was designed by Carnevale and Koumrouyan for Harry Winston, New York. Completed in 1967, this fantastic jewel is set in gold and platinum and is accentuated with rubies, sapphires and emeralds.
| The 'Peacock' and the 318.44 carat ‘Zale' Opal, donated by Zales Jewellery Corporation, are part of the extensive collection held at the Smithsonian Institute Museum in Washington. They are accompanied by a 345 carat opal with intense play of fire against a white background and a spectacular Black Opal of 58.8 carats. |  |
This magnificent Black opal ring also resides at the Smithsonian.
More recently in the 1980’s a stone weighing 574.09 carats was added to the Los Angeles Museum collection.
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Master Jeweller Henri Vever’s “La Bretonne” pendant is amongst the most iconic of the Art Nouveau designs created at the turn of the century; it was exhibited at the 1900 Exposition Universelle in Paris and earned Vever the Grand Prix award for design. The Bretons of France are an ethnic minority who migrated from south western |
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The characteristic white bonnets or coiffes worn by Breton women were a popular subject for writers and artists during the Romantic period. Crafted in enamel and inlaid with blue-green Opals, highlighted by diamonds, and amethysts, the pendant bears the delicate profile of a young girl wearing the traditional female headdress of Sold by Christies on |
Australian Collections:
Among the many magnificent gems crafted by the great lapidaries in Idar Oberstein Germany at the turn of the last century were some marvellous solid Boulder Opal Cameos. The cameo on the left remains in the private collection of Tully C. Wollaston’s descendants in South Australia.
Idar Oberstein or Kirschweiler was an Historic Opal Cutting Center and once the richest town in Rheinland-Pfalz, if not in all Germany, courtesy of imports of the magical gem from Australia.
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The Ceremonial Scissors used to cut the ribbon at the official opening of the Sydney Harbour Bridge on the 19th of March 1932 are encrusted with six striking Opals and were made by Angus & Coote jewellers of Sydney. These regal scissors were used again 60 years later to cut the ribbon at the opening ceremony of the Sydney Harbour Tunnel on the |
Eric a 110 million year old Opalised Pliosaur is housed at the Australian museum in Sydney NSW. This remarkable skeleton was found in 1987 by Joe Vida at Coober Pedy SA. In 1993 a public appeal raised funds to purchase Eric and keep him in the country. Laws have since been enacted to curtail the export of such fossil heritage.
The ‘Rose’ is a mystical Queensland Boulder Opal touchstone. This miraculous specimen was found at ‘Jerry’s Mine’ Palparrara and remains in the collection of its finder Jerry Doktor.
One of the largest precious Opals ever found in the world. The ‘Olympic Australis’ was found in Coober Pedy South Australia in 1956. That same year Australia hosted the Olympic Games in Melbourne, fittingly the stone which weighs 17,000 carats (3.4 kilograms), is in the collection of Altmann & Cherny of Melbourne.
‘Halley’s Comet’ - A massive Nobby (rough Black Opal) the size of a man’s fist was found at Lightning Ridge on November 3rd 1986. Noted in The Guinness Book of World Records as ‘The world’s largest gem uncut Black Opal’, it currently weighs 1982.50 carats, its dimensions are 100x66x63cm and it is for sale with an asking price of AUD$1.2m.
The famous 'Galaxy' stone is a marvellous 550 carat (11cm x 9cm) palm sized gem Boulder Opal found in October 1989, at Opalville Mine No. 135 near Jundah Queensland, by Josip Grguranic aka. Jundah Joe or Silky Joe. It is reported to have been valued at $1.2 million.
Joe mined this area for nearly a quarter of a century and was a prolific producer of red and patterned Opal.
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The 'Virgin Rainbow’ is a rare Black Crystal Opal belemnite fossil or 'pipe', it is eye-clean and 63mm in length. This incredibly luminous gem was mined at Brown's Folly (3 Mile) field by long time Coober Pedy Opal miners John Dunstan and his partner Steve Jagar, in September 2003. The 72.65 carat gemstone featured in the four part documentary ‘Opal Fever’ for the ABC Reality Bites documentary series. |
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Sources & Image Credits: A HISTORY OF JEWELLERY: 1100-1870, Joan Evans, 1970 (2nd Ed.). (Sir Francis Drake - English fashion after 1573) AMAZING CARTIER: JEWELLERY DESIGN SINCE 1937, Nadine Coleno, 2009. www.cartier.com/tell-me/living-heritage/patrimony/the-cartier-collection/ ANCESTRAL JEWELS, Diana Scarisbrick, 1989. ( 1.Queen Mary, 2. Cheapside hoard, 1690 Schedule at Burghley House) A JOURNEY WITH COLOUR Vol II Part B, A HISTORY OF LIGHTNING RIDGE, Len Cram, 2004.(Dunstan's Stone) BEAUTIFUL OPALS - AUSTRALIAS NATIONAL GEM, Len Cram, 1994. DUBNICKY OPAL, Maros Barok & Peter Semrad, 2001. CROWN JEWELS OF HILTON AUSTRALIA Vol.2 No.4 summer Issue 1987/88, Article: 'Opals - Australia's National Gem' by E. Gregory Sherman HOLLYWOOD JEWELS, Penny Proddow Debra Healy & Marion Fasel, 1992. JEWELRY 7000 YEARS, Hugh Tait (ed), 1991. (Grenville Jewel) JEWELLERY FROM THE RENAISSANCE TO ART NOUVEAU, Claude Fregnac, 1965. (Necklace once belonging to the Maréchale de Rochambeau) LAPIDARY JOURNAL, Article 'Crown of Charlemagne', June Culp Zeitner, May 1983. LA BRETONNE, Henri Vever:www.christies.com/presscenter/pdf/09172009/105759.pdf http://thejewelryloupe.com/christies-sells-fred-leighton-jewels/ LETTERS TO ERIC, Judith Smith & Dr. Alex Ritchie, 1993. MAGNIFICENT TIFFANY SILVER, John Loring, 2001.(Paulding Farnham Vases) OPAL - THE PHENOMENAL GEMSTONE, Lithographie, 2007. (Stephanie's Parure) PAULDING FARNHAM TIFFANY"S LOST GENIUS, John Loring, 2000. (Tiffany's opal encrusted silver holloware) PETER CARL FABERGE GOLDSMITH & JEWELLER TO THE RUSSIAN COURT HIS LIFE & WORK, Henry Bainbridge, 1967. (Alexandra Feodorvna and her daughters) REDISCOVER OPALS IN AUSTRALIA, Stephen Aracic, 1999. (1.Historic Scissors used to open Sydney Harbour Bridge 2. Famous 'Galaxy' Boulder Opal) ROYAL JEWELS; FROM CHARLEMAGNE TO THE ROMANOVS, Diana Scarisbrick, Christophe Vachaudez & Jan Walgrave, 2008. (Sir Francis Drake) ROYAL TREASURES, Erich Steingraber, 1968. (Drinking Cup in the Prado) THE DESIGNS OF ARCHIBALD KNOX FOR LIBERTY & CO., A.J. Tilbrook, 1995. (Cigar Box) THE GREAT BOOK OF JEWELS, Ernst A. & Jean Heiniger, 1974. TIFFANY COLOURED GEMSTONES, John Loring, 2007. TWENTY FIVE YEARS OF STUART DEVLIN IN LONDON, The Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths, 1983. YARD: THE LIFE & MAGNIFICENT JEWELRY OF RAYMOND C. YARD, Natasha Kuzmanovic, 2007. (Yard - du Pont; Image courtesy of Southebys) |
