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Question about possible Old Miner''s cut ring

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tealeaf

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Hi all,
I''ve been researching old posts on this great site and have learned a tremendous amount of information about diamonds. I am looking for an engagement ring, and am intrigued by the uniqueness of Old Miner''s cut and Old European cut stones and vintage settings. I have mostly seen small center diamonds (.25 and less) in many of the vinage settings. The other day I found a beautiful ring in heavy 18k, approx. 1 carat diamond (the clerk said it was J color, SI1 or 2, and Old Miner''s cut, but I didn''t see the paperwork yet), flanked by two large sapphires that I fell in love with.

I don''t have a photo to share, but I have a question about what you all think about it''s value, and particularly it''s odd shape. The diamond is not quite cushion, definitely not round, and more like an oval, but not as oval as modern ovals. It has an open cutlet clearly visible and a high table. It''s cut is not perfect, and you can see slight variables with a 10x loop (I didn''t seen any inclusions, feathering, etc. with the loop, though, even though she called it SI). So far through researching on the net I have only found cushion OMC and round OEC. Is there such a thing as an oval OMC or OEC? The ring and diamond are stunning, with lots of fire. The price seems good - $2,500. Does the price seem acceptable? Please let me know your thoughts. Thank you in advance
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Richard Sherwood

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At first glance, the price seems reasonable if the ring is as represented.

If you make the purchase contingent upon the ring appraising out to your satisfaction, with a reasonable right-of-return period (10 days?), you can''t lose.

This is a reasonable request, which most reasonable vendors will go along with.

Reasonable, reasonable, reasonable.
 

valeria101

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Date: 1/28/2005 11:5:54 PM
Author:tealeaf
Is there such a thing as an oval OMC or OEC?
Sure... pears, ovals... what not. The rectangular or square-ish cushion shape is the expected, but there are variations - all called "old mine" as far as I know.

If you look deep among Richard''s older posts you will find some pricing guidelines for these stones. However, if this one is still in it''s original setting the price and value would reflect the overall quality of the piece on top of what the components might cost.

Is there a picture available ?
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tealeaf

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Thanks for your fast reply! I have it on hold until Tuesday, and am going to Boca today to scout out other estate pieces to see if I can find something comparable (I''m on the other FL coast from you in West Palm Beach). So, it appears that FedEx''ing jewelry is a pretty common practice for appraisals - it is safe? The idea makes me a little nervous.
 

tealeaf

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I''ll try to get a digital photo when I visit the shop next, but the last time I tried to photograph a diamond it came out as a blurry white blob. I''ll practice at home a bit with the zoom. Thanks!
 

Richard Sherwood

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Date: 1/29/2005 10
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1:14 AM
Author: tealeaf
So, it appears that FedEx''ing jewelry is a pretty common practice for appraisals - it is safe? The idea makes me a little nervous.
Its actually very safe. Still, its nice to have insurance coverage in the unlikely event something did happen.

In twenty five years of shipping packages, I''ve yet to suffer a loss through federal express.
 

denverappraiser

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leaf,

If you aren''t in a huge hurry and you''re shipping from a US address to another US address, registered mail with the US postal service is very secure and comes with pretty good insurance. They also have higher insurance limits than Federal Express for those who are shipping things over $5,000.

Neil Beaty
GG (GIA) ISA NAJA
Independent Appraisals in Denver
 

Maxine

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I have an old diamond cut before 1949....has open culet and small table....guess it''s a good stone...I read somewhere that the belief once was that open culets let out evil spirits or something like that .....have you heard that one????
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Maxine

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Correction...was cut before 1940....do you think that would be an oldminers cut?????It''s only about .4 Ct.
 

diagem

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Probably not, an old mine cut diamond was mostly cut untill about the early 1900"s, diamonds cut later are categorized as Old European

Your''s sounds like a old-european...
 

tealeaf

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I''ve scoured the Boca area, and finally found a stone similar to the one I picked out in West Palm. I found a jeweler that deals only in antiques (Mark''s Angique Jewelery in the International Jewelry Exchange - super nice guy), and he has the most beautiful platinum and old mine and old european ring collection with great prices (from what I''ve seen for similar rings on the web, anyway). He had one the same size as the one I want (his was 1.08 caratm I-J color, SI) in a stunning original, heavy platinum setting with the most crystal clear engraving (it was like it was never worn) for $3000. I wish I had the extra $ to purchase it an put it way for another 40 years, just for an investment. It seems like the one with sapphires I like was reset at some point over the past 20-30 years. Since I like the look of the one in West Palm, I''m going to purchase it (as Richard recommended) with the ability to return if I don''t like an independant appraisal.

BTW, it was heart breaking to hear several jewelers tell me that I wouldn''t be happy with an OMC, and that I''d like a OEC or modern cut better. How do they know what I like? For me it is not just about the stone, but the mystery and history behind it. I found several OEC''s from .5 to 1.5 yesterday, and although they all were beautiful, and you couldn''t really see the culet with the naked eye, I like the OMC''s better. Some also told me that their standard practice is to have OMC''s re-cut to increase their value, so they didn''t have any. So sad!
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