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The Gem Dialogue, 1000 5th Ave, New York, NY (2026)

09/23/2026

Ruby, at its most commanding. ❤️

At the heart of this Graff High Jewellery necklace is a magnificent nine-carat oval unheated ruby, its intense red amplified by three further cushion-cut unheated rubies and a remarkable framework of diamonds.

Rather than simply surrounding the rubies, the diamonds appear to radiate from the, abstract lines, fan-shaped settings and pear-shaped drops creating movement around each burst of colour. Graff likens the effect to the fiery radiance of a setting sun, and it is easy to see why.

The accompanying earrings continue the same design language, set with a perfectly matched pair of five-carat oval unheated rubies from Mozambique.

What makes the suite especially compelling is the challenge behind the stones themselves: bringing together important unheated rubies of this scale and visual harmony, then building a design powerful enough to match their presence.

A jewel where the diamonds provide the light, but the rubies command the room.

Graff ruby necklace, Graff unheated ruby necklace, nine carat ruby, Mozambique ruby earrings, ruby and diamond High Jewellery

09/21/2026

Two extraordinary Colombian emeralds, transformed by Cartier.

Created in 1938, this pair of Art Deco Cartier clips centres on two monumental carved emeralds: an oval stone of 93.85 carats and a hexagonal stone of 56.40 carats. Both carvings predate the Cartier settings - the hexagonal emerald is catalogued as 19th century, while the oval emerald is described as 19th century or later.

Rather than recutting the stones, Cartier designed around their individual forms and carvings, surrounding them with natural pearls, ruby beads and old- and single-cut diamonds in platinum. The contrast is quintessentially Cartier: deep emerald green against vivid ruby, softened by the lustre of pearls and sharpened by diamonds.

Signed Cartier and numbered, the clips were later accompanied by a modern Cartier blackened-gold cuff designed to accommodate them, allowing the historic jewels to be worn in another form.

The pair has travelled through major exhibitions from Paris and Venice to Beijing and San Francisco, and ultimately realised US$1,695,000 at auction.

Two ancient-looking carved emeralds, one distinctly Art Deco Cartier composition.

Cartier Art Deco emerald clips, 1938 Cartier jewellery, carved Colombian emeralds, Cartier emerald ruby pearl clips, historic Cartier jewels, Christie’s

09/20/2026

62.94 carats of Colombian emeralds - matched across one Chopard parure.

At the heart of this Chopard suite are 33 Colombian emeralds, together weighing approximately 162.94 carats. Finding stones of this scale is one thing; assembling a group with such consistency is another. Gübelin described the emeralds as possessing a “saturated and homogeneous colour” with an exceptional degree of transparency, noting the rarity of such a matched set.

The parure comprises a dramatic bib necklace, pendent earrings and a coordinating bracelet. Heart-shaped emeralds punctuate an intricate lattice of oval, heart-shaped and brilliant-cut diamonds, creating a design that feels almost lace-like despite the substantial weight of the gemstones.

All 33 emeralds were determined to be of Colombian origin, with indications of minor clarity enhancement. The suite is mounted in 18-karat white and yellow gold and signed Chopard.

What makes it particularly compelling is the repetition of the heart, not simply as a motif in the diamonds, but carved into the silhouette of the emeralds themselves.

Chopard emerald parure, 162.94 carats Colombian emeralds, Chopard high jewellery, heart shaped emerald necklace, Colombian emerald and diamond suite

09/19/2026

38.51 carats of Colombian emerald with nothing to hide. 💚

At the centre of this Etcetera bangle sits an extraordinary 38.51-carat Colombian emerald, remarkable not simply for its scale, but for something considerably rarer: no indications of clarity modification.

SSEF described the stone as possessing an attractive saturated colour and “very fine purity,” qualities rarely encountered in a Colombian emerald of this size. Gübelin likewise reported no indications of clarity enhancement, while AGL classified its origin as Classic Colombia, enhancement: none.

The setting wisely lets the emerald command the composition. Brilliant-cut diamonds frame the gallery, while a sleek line of marquise diamonds forms the bangle, including six stones ranging from approximately 1.00 to 1.54 carats.

A wonderfully restrained design around a stone that needs very little embellishment.

The bangle realised HK$21,913,000.

Colombian emerald, unenhanced Colombian emerald, Etcetera emerald diamond bangle, exceptional Colombian emerald jewellery, no clarity enhancement emerald

09/18/2026

The DuPont Ruby - an American provenance, a Burmese treasure. ❤️

At its heart is an 11.20-carat Burmese ruby, certified by AGL and SSEF as unheated and displaying the coveted “Pigeon Blood” red colour.

But its story extends beyond the stone. The brooch belonged to Mrs. Alfred I. du Pont, connecting it to one of America’s great industrial families. Set amongst emeralds, old and marquise-cut diamonds and natural saltwater pearls, the ruby became the centrepiece of an unusually colourful composition.

The jewel later entered the collection of the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, and in December 2019 the museum offered it at Christie’s New York Magnificent Jewels, with proceeds intended to benefit future acquisitions.

Estimated at US$3.5–5.5 million, the DuPont Ruby ultimately realised an extraordinary US$8,957,750 — nearly $9 million.

A jewel where rarity, provenance and philanthropy all became part of the story.

DuPont Ruby, Mrs Alfred I du Pont jewellery, 11.20 carat Burmese ruby, unheated pigeon blood ruby, Christie’s Magnificent Jewels 2019, Virginia Museum of Fine Arts

09/17/2026

A river of rubies, the Gimel way. ❤️

This striking suite by Gimel brings together a necklace, bracelet and pair of ear pendants, each built around a graduated procession of oval rubies framed in brilliant-cut diamonds and punctuated by pear-shaped diamond accents.

Across the suite are 38 rubies totalling approximately 88 carats. According to SSEF, 35 are Burmese and three are from Siam (Thailand); eight showed no indications of heating, while thirty showed indications of heating.

There is something wonderfully unapologetic about the design, rather than allowing a single ruby to dominate, Gimel creates impact through repetition, graduating the stones into a continuous rhythm of red and white.

Offered at Christie’s, the complete suite realised HK$6,040,000.

Gimel ruby diamond suite, 88 carats ruby jewellery, Burmese ruby necklace, Gimel high jewellery, ruby and diamond necklace bracelet earrings

09/16/2026

An Art Deco jewel, and the woman who gave it life. 💚

This extraordinary circa 1925 emerald, natural pearl and diamond pendant once belonged to Lady Wimborne, the celebrated society hostess, political spouse and supporter of composer William Walton.

She was famously photographed by Cecil Beaton for Tatler wearing the pendant suspended from a diamond chain, a wonderful reminder of how dramatically these Art Deco jewels were actually worn.

The design combines carved Colombian emerald drops with calibré buff-top emeralds, natural saltwater pearls and old, single and carré-cut diamonds. SSEF found the two principal emeralds to be Colombian, with only a minor amount of oil in fissures.

Lady Wimborne’s friend Sir Osbert Sitwell wrote that her beauty and glamour could easily obscure the “clever woman who inhabited this exquisite shell”, a particularly evocative description of a woman remembered for far more than her fashionable appearance.

From the Wimborne family collection, the pendant was offered at Christie’s London in November 2025 and realised £635,000 around £300,000 above its estimate.

Thank you Christie's Jewellery for the opportunity to see this remarkable piece up close.

Lady Wimborne jewellery, Art Deco emerald pendant, Cecil Beaton Lady Wimborne, Colombian emerald natural pearl pendant, Christie’s London Jewels 2025

09/15/2026

A Kashmir sapphire that has survived more than a century untouched by heat. 💙

Dating to circa 1890, this late 19th-century jewel centres on an antique cushion-shaped sapphire weighing 10.38 carats, surrounded by old cushion-shaped diamonds and mounted in silver and gold.

Both SSEF and Gübelin identified the sapphire as originating from Kashmir, with no indications of heating - a combination of origin, size and untreated condition that makes stones of this calibre particularly coveted.

The construction is equally fascinating. Its detachable brooch fitting allowed the jewel to transform, so it could be worn as a pendant, brooch or bracelet - versatility that was already being explored by jewellers well over a century ago.

Still accompanied by its fitted burgundy S.J. Phillips case, the jewel realised £952,500.

A beautiful reminder that with exceptional antique jewellery, the setting and history can be almost as compelling as the stone itself.

Kashmir sapphire, unheated Kashmir sapphire, Victorian sapphire diamond brooch, circa 1890 sapphire pendant, antique Kashmir sapphire jewellery

09/14/2026

A jewel I had known through photographs - until I saw it in Vienna. ❤️

I saw Marlene Dietrich’s extraordinary Van Cleef & Arpels ‘Jarretière’ bracelet at the Glückstücke exhibition in Vienna in July 2026, and what struck me most was the rubies. Look closely at the video: the cushion-shaped stones are assembled so beautifully that they seem to flow into one another, forming an almost uninterrupted field of red around the diamond centre. It is magnificent in person.

Created in 1937, the bracelet takes its inspiration from a couture garter. Its sculptural ruby cluster is set against round, single, rectangular and baguette-cut diamonds in platinum, a bold composition with remarkable volume.

And it suited Dietrich perfectly. An actress, singer and style icon who famously played with ideas of femininity and masculinity, she wore the bracelet rather than simply preserving it. It appeared on her wrist in Alfred Hitchcock’s Stage Fright in 1950, at the 1951 Academy Awards, and in numerous photographs and public appearances.

Since then, the bracelet has taken on another life, exhibited internationally in major exhibitions in Tokyo, New York, Paris and Beijing, and now preserved in the Van Cleef & Arpels Collection. It also realised US$4,527,000 when it returned to auction.

Seeing it up close, you understand why it became so closely associated with her bold, glamorous and impossible to overlook.

Marlene Dietrich ruby bracelet, Van Cleef & Arpels Jarretière, Glückstücke Vienna 2026, Marlene Dietrich jewellery, 1937 ruby diamond bracelet

09/13/2026

119.94 carats of yellow sapphires with flashes of Winston blue. 💛💙

Acquired from Harry Winston in 1983, this striking suite brings together yellow sapphires, blue sapphires and diamonds across a necklace, bracelet, ring and pair of detachable pendant earrings.

The real drama comes from the yellow sapphires: 48 stones totalling 119.94 carats, predominantly hexagonal in shape, creating a wonderfully graphic rhythm against the blue sapphires and flashes of round and pear-shaped diamonds.

Made in 18k yellow gold, the suite bears the maker’s mark of Jacques Timey, whose workshop produced jewels for Harry Winston during this period. The detachable earring pendants add another clever element to the suite.

There is something distinctly 1980s about its scale and confidence - strong geometry, saturated colour and absolutely no attempt to be discreet.

The complete suite realised CHF 239,400 at Christie’s.

Harry Winston sapphire suite, 1983 Harry Winston jewellery, yellow sapphire necklace, Jacques Timey Harry Winston, vintage coloured sapphire jewellery

The Gem Dialogue

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