Chronicles
Jewellery Fireworks The Adin Way: soundless and environmentally friendly)
We would like to congratulate you again
for showing the great taste
to call upon our antique jewellery services.
Happy New Year!
A change of balls....
Here at Adin, we gladly accept every opportunity for a celebration, especially this time of the year. Even though we enjoy taking out our regular decorations, we felt that our current jewellery collection could use a change of gear.
Now, isn't this ensemble of natural baubles and whimsical platinum Art Nouveau pendulum the pinnacle of holiday spirit creativity in a Fine Antique Jewellery Store? Imagine how the wintry winds flow from the hinge of the 1910s necklace through the swirling old brilliant cut diamond curves to the glistening 3.20 ct. opal, while the bottom pearl drop sways between these tropical trinkets.
A festive ambience for every season!
Click here to get to this Art Nouveau pendant with diamonds and large opal.
Reflections of centuries of memories
We are thrilled to share the marvel of this authentic antique yellow gold ring of high carat gold, as it's the most literal timestamp possible for the year 1692. With many decades of dealing in antique jewellery on a daily basis, we can consider that it's extremely rare to come across jewellery of such an old age and—on top of that—with hallmarks.
How remarkable it is that the ring clearly bears the hallmarks for Amsterdam and the year letter F for the year 1692. To come across Dutch 17th-century jewellery that is so clearly hallmarked is extremely rare!
As an extra mark of the baroque period in which this unique ring came to be, its eccentric design consists of a drop-shaped rose cut garnet top with a filigree aura and a ring shank covered with gold lozenges alternating with gold flower granules.
Once, this ring may have been crafted as part of a person's history, but now each person it touches actually becomes part of the ring's own chronicle. What an extraordinary experience to be part of something before and beyond yourself.
Click here to get to this Late Baroque gold garnet ring hallmarked Amsterdam 1692
So much history in just one piece of jewellery!
We could have never imagined how much history and exact data are concealed in this late 18th-century bracelet. It features chromium chalcedony intaglios dating back from between 100 BC to 100 AD, set in 14K bi-colour gold, alternating with silver-encrusted old mine brilliant-cut diamonds.
One interesting fact we already want to point out is that one intaglio is the same type as the one on Julius Caesar's own signet ring, inherited and worn by Augustus.
We invite you on this journey back in time, but be warned: you will need to appeal to your stamina.
Click here to get to this 18th Century Diamond Bracelet with 2000-year-old Intaglios
The Frog King and ..... you?
Once upon a time, a frog king resorted for a while in the Garden of Adin until he was ready to go out and search for the one princess to kiss him back into his regular human form. When this frog brooch appeared last week, we couldn't help but notice the similarities between the frog king and this jewel's white enameled skin, its 18K gold body with gold glands, and its ruby cabochon eyes.
Is this a gift of the king's gratitude for our hospitality and a sign that he has found his true companion? We can clearly see that the brooch bears the name of a famous American jeweller, David Webb, so could the king be living in the US now? Or did the story of the Princess and the Frog not end as we're all made to believe? Could the king still be dwelling in this gold frog brooch, waiting to be kissed?
Important info from Adin:
Past Week's Mailing
Last week, we sent you a mail from news@antiquejewel.com. In case you have not received it, please check your spam filter and add it to your trusted contacts.
Dear fellow antique jewellery aficionado,
We first came online in February 1994, so we have been online now for over 25 years! While we have made changes since our online debut, it was about time for us to move to a modern mailing system.
Our Weekly Herald is not the average hard-core selling communication like all the others we are all too familiar with. Every week, we strive to come up with an interesting, nice, and/or funny story, and we put a lot of effort into creating special real pictures with our original antique and estate jewellery (we do not do photoshopping). When we achieve a smile on your face, we are happy.
Here you will find a link that will bring you to the archives of our Weekly Herald. In case you want to invite your friends to subscribe to our Weekly Herald, please let them visit: our subscription page.
This will be the last mail from this account. So please add our new address, news@antiquejewel.com, to your trusted senders list!
A brand new mailing system...
Adin Antique Jewellery Uses a New Mailing System
As technology constantly changes and Adin Antique Jewellery wants to stay on top, we decided to change our email system to use the latest technologies in mass-emailing. By doing so, we will be able to provide our customers with the best possible experience ever.
From now on, all mailings will be sent from "news@antiquejewel.com", so please add this email address to your allowed senders list.
If you know someone who might be interested in our Weekly Herald, please forward them this link: our subscriptiohttps://antiquejewel.us5.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=7bcc79d361160354f898e63f1&id=ba4f0e3c8bn page.
Click here for more info on this antique long pendent earrings.
Time to start dreaming of a white Christmas
Victorian antique ring with diamonds and emerald
Adin Antique Jewellery presents this astonishing Victorian ring starring in Eran Riklis' thriller Spider in the Web alongside Sir Ben Kingsley and grande dame Monica Bellucci. Often before, Adin has received the honour of being the supplier of props for international movie productions, but it's truly a premiere that one of our antique jewellery pieces plays a key role in the storyline.
A ring as the lead role, a real hero prop—are you intrigued yet?
After keeping this famous jewel on hold during the production period for about a year and a half until the movie's world premiere at the end of August and the beginning of September 2019, we can now finally reveal its splendour and character to all of you.
The true eye-catcher of this Victorian ring is a 3.50 carat oval cut emerald in an 18K yellow gold setting, vertically aligned with 2 old European cut diamonds. This starry centre is surrounded by 34 dazzling diamonds, which are set in silver and radiate over five gold shoulders on each side.
Click here for more info on this Victorian antique ring with diamonds and emerald.
1½ meter gold antique chain (close-up)
Dare to enter The Garden of Adin at Halloween?
November Night...
"November Night"
Listen...
With faint dry sound,
Like steps of passing ghosts,
The leaves, frost-crisp’d, break from the trees
And fall.
Adelaide Crapsey, American poet, 1878-1914
Click here for more info on this Victorian chestnut leaf brooch.
William Tell story confirmed by find of original apple and arrow!
According to legend, in 1307 the Uri region was subjected to the tyranny of Gessler, an Austrian ruler. A village bailiff placed his hat on a pole and ordered the villagers to bow to it. Chamois hunter William Tell refused and was forced to shoot an apple off his son's head.
Now it is with great pride that the Adin Antique Jewellery Museum of Fairy Tale Artifacts displays the actual apple and arrow. They were offered to the museum by a person who claimed to be a Swiss descendant. Museum director and jewellery expert Mr. Elkan Wijnberg was struck by the fact that the brooch indeed features an arrow and considers this to be sufficient proof of the claim that these are the original artifacts.
Click here for more info on this Victorian large diamond arrow brooch.
Bibbidi Bobbidi Boo!
Looking forward to whatever road lies ahead, this Italian Fifties 18K gold carriage, built in Mellerio style, has the ability to carry you to any gala you could ever imagine. As your fairy godmother, Adin promises that the coach won't change into a pumpkin, so even after midnight, you can count on these white gold wheels to take you away in this yellow gold frame with diamonds and sapphires embedded in whimsical opaline enamel, as the white gold lanterns light your path.
However, the driver's got a mind of his own, being a former horse, as you know.
Click here for more info on this ring by vintage brooch style Mellerio.
Another Arty Farty Picture
Fernand Demaret (Namur, Belgium 1924-2013)
Fernand Demaret's ambition was to follow in the footsteps of his grandfather, a watchmaker, until one day in 1954 when he met Madame Liliane Nathalie Mosselmans. She asked her best friend André Lami to create contemporary jewellery, which inspired Fernand Demaret to develop his unique style.
His first shop, opened in 1963, was located at Rue du Bailli 10, Brussels, and later moved in the 70s to the prestigious Avenue Louise 31 in Brussels until its closure in 1992. Along with his wife Liliane and many colleagues like Claude Wezelle, Bernard Francois, Jean Pierre Laloux, and others, he created jewellery in his distinctive style.
After the store closed in 1992, they continued their work in his showroom located at 31 Rue Bosquet, Brussels, until his death in 2013.
Click here for more info on this ring by Fernand Demaret with diamonds and emerald.
A diamond topper!
Vintage Seventies Corum watch with a twist.
Movie prop for 'Spider in the Web'
Adin Antique Jewellery presents this astonishing Victorian ring starring in Eran Riklis' thriller Spider in the Web alongside Sir Ben Kingsley and grande dame Monica Bellucci. Often before, Adin has received the honour of being the supplier of props for international movie productions, but it's truly a premiere that one of our antique jewellery pieces plays a key role in the story line.
A ring as the lead role, a real hero prop—are you intrigued yet?
After keeping this famous jewel on hold during the production period for about a year and a half until the movie's world premiere at the end of August and the beginning of September 2019, we can now finally reveal its splendour and character to all of you.
The true eye-catcher of this Victorian ring is a 3.50 carat oval cut emerald in an 18K yellow gold setting, vertically aligned with 2 old European cut diamonds. This starry centre is surrounded by 34 dazzling diamonds, which are set in silver and radiate over five gold shoulders on each side.
Click here for more info on this Victorian antique ring with diamonds and emerald.
King or Queen, we all look nice in pink.
Looking at the Garden of Adin
Heat wave solution: Cool Vintage Art Deco Jewellery
Purple Pleasing Portables with Subtle Scents
Peculiar Poppies Popping Up With Pleasant Phantasies
In this refined 18K yellow gold estate engagement ring, the natural Colombian emerald emanates its verdant green colour over both diamond scrolls on its left and right side. Four diamonds, rail-set in each scroll, curl up around a centre beginning and ending in a cabochon cut emerald.
Rest assured that the mesmerising deep green of this emerald will lure you in as if you're under a spell. And who knows, of which faraway dreamlands its diamond scrolls tell exciting bedtime stories.
Click here for more info on this Estate engagement ring with top emerald and diamonds.
Adin, where summer is the default state of mind!
Vanitas vanitatum, omnia vanitas. A time for reflection.
Bird spotting in The Garden of Adin
Once in a while, the Garden of Adin is honoured by the presence of a rare 18K bicolour gold Fifties owl coming all the way from France. The one we’ve spotted just recently has even got green cabochon cut agate eyes, diamond eyebrows, and white gold collar feathers.
But specifically, his expression is what really makes us wonder: What does this spirit of wisdom see that we can’t while he’s gazing through the garden? One thing is for certain, whoever is chosen to have this patient life guide on her or his shoulder will undoubtedly be able to mesmerize any opponent.
Click here for more info on this Vintage Fifties French gold owl.
Buzzing around in The Garden of Adin
Each spring, a whole variety of flowers and fruits blossom in the Garden of Adin. To discover to which force of nature we owe this wide range of beauty in our garden, we stood on the look-out for hours.
All of a sudden, we noticed this 18K gold bumblebee busy buzzing from bud to bloom. Once you've seen her stunning yellow gold patterned engravings lively shimmering in the warm sun, you can't keep your eyes off of her.
That's when it hit us: our garden wouldn't be the same without this little worker brooch that came flying over all the way from Italy. We're already looking forward to which exotic flower this bumblebee will tumble on next.
Click here for more info on this Vintage Fifties gold bee pin/brooch.
16th Century Old Dutch Still Life
Baroque ring from around 1700
This 18K yellow gold Late Baroque ring from around 1700 behaves just like a looking glass. Once you start looking at it, you keep on finding new wonders as if you've entered a whole new world!
Your eye gets drawn in by the bow-shaped silver top, constructed out of seven domes with rose-cut diamonds. Deeper you fall when you spot the little engravings in three of these domes and in the central gold backing. Then suddenly, the French lilies and open work in the shank attract your gaze.
Many have gone down this path and got lost in this ring's craftsmanship and elegance. Well, we don't consider being at a wonderful place through a mesmerising jewel as being lost...
Click here for more info on this Late Baroque ring from around 1700.
A mixture of Art Deco and Belle Époque!
Look what came peeping out from between the flora in the Garden of Adin: this dazzling platinum bar brooch from around 1920. We admit it: this beauty seems to be a late bloomer as it only started budding out this time of the season.
We realise that time is very much of the essence in our society, but here at Adin we appreciate the expression in the slow sense. Oh, and how it was worth the wait for this jewel's 105 diamonds and 36 pearls designed with a mixture of Art Deco and Belle Époque features!
We know that even if it isn't for right now, you may just grow in love with this antique piece and suddenly pop up at our shop for your perfect match.
Click here for more info on this Art Deco Belle Epoque brooch.
You are kindly invited to @AdinAntiqueJewellery at Instagram
The cornelian with an intaglio engraved male profile on this Pre-Victorian 18K yellow gold ring from 1820 proves to be a true Imperial jewel that embodies standing and style, completing any gentleman's allure.
We'd be honoured to be your source of inspiration for your season of shine! Quite literally: we kindly invite you to check our @AdinAntiqueJewellery account on Instagram.
Click here for more info on this Early Victorian antique intaglio gold gents ring.
Please visit @AdinAntiqueJewellery at Instagram
These 14K yellow gold Dutch Victorian chandelier earrings from 1860 gleam through a constellation of three filigree dangling universes. With these almost otherworldly perfected jewels, we're fully groomed for the sunlit days and starry nights of summer.
We'd be honoured to be your source of inspiration for your season of shine! Quite literally: we kindly invite you to check our @AdinAntiqueJewellery account on Instagram.
Click here for more info on this antique Dutch chandelier filigree earrings.
Why is this apple different from all other apples?
Ever since our Gardener created the Garden of Adin as it is now, he has developed a remarkable eye; he knows his quality antique jewellery from any other jewellery. Often, he walks with our visitors on the edge of his wondrous world, but he never shows anyone the centre of his creation.
Out of human curiosity, we ventured out to see for ourselves what wells of jewellery wisdom and what treasures of trinkets and truths our Gardener was keeping for himself, right there at the centre of the Garden of Adin. What we've discovered is only a toothy snake solidified into this 18K gold Victorian bracelet, positioned as if he's enjoying an apple.
We must admit that its warm yellow glow, ruby eyes, diamond crown, and filigree skin pattern have definitely seduced us into wearing it on our own wrist. Other than that intriguing gold creature, we don't know what all the fuss is about: it certainly couldn't be the ordinary apple.
Click here for more info on this Victorian 18K gold diamond snake bangle.
Vintage jewellery in mint condition.
With its mint fresh green emerald, this British Modernistic 18K yellow gold ring from the Seventies is just the perfect precious piece to welcome spring back into your home. The 10+ carat evergreen cabochon centre is surrounded by cubic pillars of gold that arise from the ring's shank. Eight of these pilasters are even topped off with a brilliant-cut diamond, shimmering like dewdrops in a grassy meadow.
Can you see yourself enjoying the warmth of the first sun of the year, with that first lemon-mint-cucumber cocktail of the season, finished off by this design bedizenment? Because we can!
Click here for more info on this vintage modernistic design ring.
The triumph of Priapus, a giggle ring.
Gold 18th Century Erotic Neo-classicistic Intaglio Ring: "The Triumph of Priapus"
A classy 18th-century ring with an image that, once you understand what you're looking at, makes you giggle. The image is known as "The Triumph of Priapus," and we even found some 18th-century drawings with this scene belonging to The British Museum.
As far as we have been able to determine, only a few of these rings with this scenery are known to exist. We were lucky enough to find a very interesting thesis (2011) by Raimon Graells i Fabregat, in which he dives fully into the history of this ring.
In Greek mythology, Priapus was a minor rustic fertility god, protector of livestock, fruit plants, gardens, and male genitalia. Priapus is marked by his oversized, permanent erection, which gave rise to the medical term priapism. He became a popular figure in Roman erotic art and Latin literature and is the subject of the often humorously obscene collection of verse called the Priapeia.
Lovers....
Lover, it's immoral
But why quarrel with our bliss
When two lips of coral
Want to kiss
(from: "Lover" by Ella Fitzgerald)
Click here to get to this Vintage high quality blood coral drop earrings.
Going bananas with this modernistic signed Demaret brooch
We all know already that you can discover an excellent collection of antique jewellery at the Garden of Adin. Now, you can also witness how everyone there goes fully bananas for this modern 18K yellow gold art piece by Belgian jewellery artist Fernand Demaret (1924-2013).
Since the 1960s, Fernand Demaret has been considered a pioneer in modern jewellery art and, more importantly, in commercialising it. By using the lost wax technique, he was able to combine different elements into an abstraction while still creating a baroque style. True to the Demaret signature, this artistic composition is subtly touched up with two brilliant-cut diamonds and a baroque pearl.
And so every seemingly mechanical component and organic abstraction becomes more than a work of art: it truly becomes part of a jewel. Furthermore, this brooch is rather of architectural dimensions beyond regular proportions, even for a Demaret. Even more reason why this large piece of art jewellery ticks all the boxes of being part of the jewellery world as well as the art world.
Wouldn't you go bananas over this?
Click here to get to this modernistic signed Demaret brooch.
Cartier Vintage Fifties Trembleuse Brooch Flower that opens/closes
While unfolding the five petals of gold gauze, a trembleuse heart of diamonds, sapphires, rubies, and emeralds arises from this Fifties 18K yellow gold flower brooch signed by Cartier. With all its colour and gimmickry, this meticulously crafted statement piece can portray your every mood.
Wear it with the flower wide open, and let your own magnificence radiate through the flickering gems as they jitter on top of their stems with every move you make. Or wear the flower as a closed bud and present a more mysterious and timid character, full of promise with the potential of blossoming.
Oh, who are we kidding? This Cartier piece doesn't need our humble words. Let it speak for itself, and you will see that this striking jewel simply fulfills everything one desires from any occasion.
Click here to get to this signed Cartier flower brooch from the Fifties.
Huh? Dog teeth in Jewellery?
The type of pearl (the big one) used in this French Art Nouveau pendant is most likely a freshwater pearl from either the Mississippi or Tennessee River. These specific irregular shapes are called dog tooth.
Click here to get to this French Art Nouveau pendant with dog tooth pearl.
Going back to my roots.
Imagine wearing 13.000+ pearls in one jewel!
Imagine: the late 19th century, early 20th century
Imagine: pearl divers
Imagine: opening oysters
Imagine: some oysters have pearls, some don't
Imagine: some oysters have big pearls, some small
Imagine: some oysters have very small pearls
Imagine: collecting the approximately 13,000 pearls needed for this necklace
Imagine: drilling these 13,000 pearls
Imagine: stringing these 13,000 pearls
Imagine: just how many hands each pearl has passed through
Imagine: that these strands of pearls had a closure made somewhere in the early 20th century
Imagine: that somewhere in the Fifties, someone decided to remove the original closure and replace it with a contemporary Fifties closure
Imagine: the many times in its life span of approximately 100 years these pearls have been worn
Imagine: what they have seen
Imagine: where they have been
Imagine: they can be yours :-)
Click here to get to this vintage pearl necklace with 13000+ pearls.
Recipes d'Amour by Adin Fine Antique Jewellery: Carat Soup!
La nouvelle cuisine d'Adin proudly presents:
Carat Soup
Ingredients:One Adin vintage eternity band (check Google for the rest of the ingredients)
Method:Put on the ring before you start cooking, then check Google on how to proceed.
Reason for the ring in this recipe?Why not? Any reason to wear antique and estate jewellery is a good one. Click here for all our antique jewellery that can be worn during cooking.
Click here to get to this vintage 3-row diamonds eternity band.
Spicy Valentine Love!
This jewel reads: + qu'hier - que demain. This is inspired by a beautiful and romantic French poem by Gérard Rosemonde (1871 - 1933) called 'Les Vieux'. It comes from the sentence:
"Et, comme chaque jour je t'aime davantage, aujourd'hui plus qu'hier et bien moins que demain."
This means:
"And because I love you more and more each day, today more than yesterday but less than tomorrow."
Awww, the French! They do have a way with words...
Click here to get to this Vintage Fifties romantic gold love pendant with diamonds and rubies.
Mirror, mirror on the wall...
For this week's mail, we would like to suggest a simple exercise. All you need to do to prepare yourself is to literally take a mirror by the hand.
If you would like to give it a try, here we go:
First, look at this picture of a young lady and then check yourself out in the mirror that you just took. Look back at the lady in the photo, and then back at yourself again. Now explain to yourself why it would be ok for her to wear an antique piece of jewellery and why not for you?
We notice that some people see the image of their own grandmother when they look at antique and vintage jewellery. Our advice: don't automatically picture someone who generally wears antique jewellery as someone from the same era of that piece. Everyone and everything of any age is so much more than just their age: they're a story, they've got depth.
Don't write off that one treasure that has caught your eye and captured your heart just because of its age. Wear it, just because you want to. And wear it bold, because you define the jewel and not the other way around!
Now take a look at the lady in the picture and then in the mirror one last time. Don't you agree that the only bad thing about what you see is that this necklace isn't around YOUR neck?
Click here to get to this Art Deco platinum pendant necklace with 20+ crt diamonds.
Antique English Crystal Jewellery: a passport to other worlds?
Reverse intaglio crystal, also known as English Crystal, is a crystal cut in the form of a cabochon, either shallow or domed, that is carved in intaglio on its flat back with a motif that is realistically painted in minute detail and is surrounded by a transparent ground. The deeper the carving, the more pronounced the three-dimensional trompe l'oeil effect, which is sometimes enhanced by a backing of a thin layer of mother-of-pearl.
The carved motif, for pieces mounted in a circular gold band as a tie pin, cuff links, button, or studs for men, was usually a racing horse, game bird, or dog. For pieces in a brooch or a locket for women, a floral design or a monogram was common; some examples depict an insect or a coaching scene.
The technique was originated by Émile Marius Pradier of Belgium around 1860 (he made the only known signed example). In England, it was developed by Thomas Cook in the early 1860s and carried on by his pupil Thomas Bean, and the latter's son Edmund and grandson Edgar (d. 1954).
After the popularity of the pieces in the late Victorian era, the high quality deteriorated by the 1920s, when examples were also being made in France and the United States. Some modern pieces depicted motor cars and aeroplanes. The crystals have long been identified with the Hancocks firm.
The crystals have sometimes been referred to by the misnomers 'Essex Crystal' or 'Wessex Crystal', owing to the erroneous assumption that they were decorated around 1860 by the enamel portrait painter William Essex (d. 1869). Imitations have been made of carved and painted glass, and even of a glass cabochon above a printed paper design.
Click here to get to this Maine Coon Cat English Crystal brooch.
Antique Moonstone Jewellery: A passport to other worlds?
As their name suggests, moonstones have been associated with the moon across various cultures and ages due to their typical milky bluish effect and white reflections reminiscent of the full moon shining through a veil of clouds. With its appearance, man has attributed the same gifts of the moon to moonstones.
As the moon renews itself monthly, so would moonstones retain youth, restore broken love, and improve fertility. As the moon influences the tides, so would moonstones protect against stormy waters. Legend even has it that the ever-changing blue and white lustre of a moonstone is a sign of a beneficent spirit dwelling within.
It's clear that a lot of history and lore hide within this gem. But of course, there’s no need for any excuse to purchase a charming ring with a moonstone as its centre. And yet, it wouldn't hurt to give it a rub to see if a genie pops out, would it?
Click here to get to this Victorian bluish moonstone and diamonds engagement ring.
Vintage Jewellery: A passport to other worlds?
This obviously exquisitely crafted Italian Fifties 18K rose gold bracelet chain is the carrier of an 18K yellow gold charm representing an African tribal mask. Not only in style and appearance does this mask strongly resemble those of the African Lega tribe, situated in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.
Also, just as Lega masks are usually handheld or appended to the body, and not worn over the face—in contrast to typical masks from other African cultures—this mask is also made to wear on the wrist and clearly not over the face.
Generally, exclusively the members of the highest ranks of this community are allowed to own and show these masks, which made the Lega mask evolve into and serve as a sort of passport proving who you are and where you're from. This bracelet could just be your permit to yet-to-be-discovered worlds, who knows...
For both the characteristics of its quality and for more information about these masks, we invite you to visit the jewellery webpage of this outstanding and unique piece.
Click here to get to this Fifties solid pink gold bracelet with ethnic african mask.
