Price question - Rubies

[EaDelano]

I''m new to this forum and haven''t had a chance to fully explore it, so please forgive me if this is too basic a question or has been asked one too many time. I''d like to buy a simple vintage ruby ring and I''ve seen several. One stood out - a cluster ring consisting of 20 rubies adding up to 2 ctw. The rubies are small, but as a cluster they look amazing. The color is a deep red/pink (a "cold" color with undertones of blue) and the stones have good clarity. Its an old ring. The stones have been matched well and each is prong-set. The guy that''s selling the ring calls them pigeon blood red, but my eye can''t discern pigeon blood red from any other shade of red, unfortunately, even though I''ve done my research. I don''t know if the stones have been treated or not, but they are most definitely natural. I don''t have any other information about their country of origin. I''ve purchased a couple items from this person and I trust him.

Ignoring the setting, if you were to purchase a parcel of natural 10 pt. rubies totaling 2ctw., and with the color and clarity I''ve described, how much would you expect to pay for it? How much would the price differ for untreated rubies? (I''m thinking its not going to make much of a difference, being that the rubies are small).

I''d get an appraisal but that would take a while and I don''t want this ring to get sold. Any tips would be highly appreciated - thanks!

 

[Lady_Disdain]

I think, in this situation, that the cost of the setting outweighs the cost of the stones. Making and setting a cluster ring is labour intensive!

As for getting an appraisal, if the ring is expensive, I would say it is a must. You can make a sale conditional to the appraisal (that is, you buy the ring now, but can get a full refund if the appraisal doesn''t match the description). This would guarantee that the ring wouldn''t be sold to anyone else.

 

[chrono]

I’m with Lady D on this one. The bulk of the cost of the ring is in the metal and labour of setting each ruby melee. The rubies, due to their small size, are not that expensive. I doubt there will be much difference in the heated or untreated price as well in very small sizes. Will you be able to get the ring checked out for proper valuation and verification that it is indeed an antique ring with real rubies prior to the sale if it is an expensive item?

 

[EaDelano]

Thanks for the replies. Unfortunately, sales are final, so I can''t return it. I did purchase other rings from this person and I''ve always had a good experience, but I guess that doesn''t guarantee that this will be a good deal as well.

I really like the cluster part of the ring but the setting is 10k yellow gold, which I''m not too excited about. I would have liked it to be in 18k or even 14k. But the workmanship would really be where the value is, as you both stated - 20 small rubies individually prong-set. The weight of the ring is 4.7 grams (gold weight 4.3g). I would date the ring to the 50s. The seller''s opinion is that the stones are pigeon blood red and look most like the colors found in finer Burmese rubies, but he has no way of confirming this.

Would you pay $200 for a ring like this? (His asking price is higher than that)

Thanks again!

 

[LD]

Please think carefully before buying. Small stones (irrespective of how many and the total carat weight) are unlikely to attract a high selling price - even if the Rubies were the best colour/clarity etc. I doubt very much whether the stones are "pigeon blood red" as this is a very over-used term and not correctly applied in many cases. Also, in many vintage pieces synthetics were commonly used and in newer pieces, treatment with Beryllium make the Rubies much more red with a higher clarity than you generally see. So, personally I wouldn't buy anything that couldn't be returned. I feel very uncomfortable when somebody stipulates a no return policy. If you post a picture we can give you a very general ball park figure on how much we would pay but this really doesn't necessarily mean we'll be correct and you do need to see a piece in real life to do that.

 

[Barrett]

Yep ignore the whole "pigeeon blood" thing..it is only a selling point..the chances of you or anyone else getting a true "pigeon blood" stone is about the same as getting struck by lightning....the weight/type of the metal and the size/type of those stones should be the top indicators of price. got a picture?

 

[chrono]

Date: 8/4/2009 2:21:52 PM
Author: EaDelano
Thanks for the replies. Unfortunately, sales are final, so I can''t return it. I did purchase other rings from this person and I''ve always had a good experience, but I guess that doesn''t guarantee that this will be a good deal as well.

I really like the cluster part of the ring but the setting is 10k yellow gold, which I''m not too excited about. I would have liked it to be in 18k or even 14k. But the workmanship would really be where the value is, as you both stated - 20 small rubies individually prong-set. The weight of the ring is 4.7 grams (gold weight 4.3g). I would date the ring to the 50s. The seller''s opinion is that the stones are pigeon blood red and look most like the colors found in finer Burmese rubies, but he has no way of confirming this.

Would you pay $200 for a ring like this? (His asking price is higher than that)

Thanks again!

I would not buy anything that is not refundable or returnable.

 

[EaDelano]

This is the ring - this is the best pic I have, sorry.

 

[EaDelano]

Tried to attach another photo but it didn''t work. The ring looks plain in the previous picture but it just glows in sunlight.

Here is another ring I bought from the same guy. The stones here turned out to be much better than what he had estimated them to be.

 

[Richard Sherwood]

It''s hard to tell from the photograph, but if you like the ring it would be hard to go much wrong at $200. At the most you might be overpaying $25-$50, but then again you might be right in the proper ballpark for it.

Looks like a pretty ring.

 

[chrono]

It doesn’t look too terrible and at $200, I don’t think you’ll be taken to the cleaners. By the same token, you aren’t getting the deal of the century either.

 

[Fly Girl]

Date: 8/4/2009 10:46:25 PM
Author: EaDelano

Tried to attach another photo but it didn''t work. The ring looks plain in the previous picture but it just glows in sunlight.

Here is another ring I bought from the same guy. The stones here turned out to be much better than what he had estimated them to be.

Certain rubies glow in the sunlight because of strong red fluorescence. This is a plus in my book, and makes the piece a lot of fun to wear.

 

[LD]

You've said above that the asking price is over $200? Yes?

 

[chrono]

Date: 8/5/2009 1:57:01 PM
Author: LovingDiamonds
You''ve said above that the asking price is over $200? Yes?

Sounds like the original asking price was overpriced and she''s trying to negotiate to something more in line with its actual value.

 

[EaDelano]

His asking price was about $300 I believe. I''m a student, so spending even $200 over jewelry is something I have to think about