1920s spinel ring

[alltheflorals]

Hello! Inaugural post here! Hoping to learn a little more about a vintage ring I purchased from a flea market. It's 14k white gold with yellow gold accents. The round spinel measures 12mm x 12mm (~7mm deep). The filigree has a lotus pattern on the top and bottom and similar details on the side. I absolutely love it - I had seen it at the market last fall, but was not ready to accept the seller's offer without a little more research. The sparkle haunted me all winter and as soon as I saw the market announced for spring, I made sure to go back to see if it was still there, and it was! Despite negotiations, I ended up paying a little more than the original offer, but I did NOT want to lose it again. It was verified as spinel by my jeweler, and the dealer stated it was natural. I told my jeweler what I paid for it and they said it was totally fair. I was looking online and similar rings of this era with spinels as large as this (dendritics gives me 6-7ct) were mostly listed as synthetic. Is this ring an anomaly? I also had a hard time finding a similar hue for comparison online as well. Do natural spinels occur in this color? Would it be a logical assumption that synthetic spinels are likely to be more saturated as those tend to be more desirable?

A few other questions I've been turning over:
1) Would this be considered Art Deco?
2) How should I describe this spinel color? Gray? Light blue? Gray-blue? Near colorless?

Any input appreciated! If this leans more towards antique/vintage board, please let me know. Thank you!

 

[T L]

It’s extremely rare to find spinels colorless or near colorless, especially this large, clean, and in a round. I would send it to a lab like AGL, for an inexpensive gem brief, just to make sure it’s not synthetic.

Are there any inclusions?

 

[arkieb1]

It’s extremely rare to find spinels colorless or near colorless, especially this large, clean, and in a round. I would send it to a lab like AGL, for an inexpensive gem brief, just to make sure it’s not synthetic.

Are there any inclusions?

This exactly, synthetic spinels test exactly the same on a Presidium gem tester as non synthetic ones do, so possibly it needs to go to a lab to confirm what it is, either way it's pretty.

 

[Calliecake]

The ring is beautiful @alltheflorals.

 

[alltheflorals]

It’s extremely rare to find spinels colorless or near colorless, especially this large, clean, and in a round. I would send it to a lab like AGL, for an inexpensive gem brief, just to make sure it’s not synthetic.

Are there any inclusions?

Thanks for the input!S I think I can say it's eye clean. I'm still pretty new using the loupe. What I've found is a chip on the culet, some wear on the top facets, but no obvious inclusions with the bulk of the body. What I do see are spreads/clouds of tiny dots that almost seem to be on or along the pavilion facets. Almost seems like dirt, but it has been sonicated and cleaned so it's not that. It was looked at under the microscope at the jewelers by a designer who said the inclusions were natural but something he/she said threw me off. They said if it were "glass", there would be no inclusions, but as I read, synthetic spinel can have inclusions (and is a separate entity from glass, right?)

 

[alltheflorals]

This exactly, synthetic spinels test exactly the same on a Presidium gem tester as non synthetic ones do, so possibly it needs to go to a lab to confirm what it is, either way it's pretty.

Thank you!

 

[alltheflorals]

The ring is beautiful @alltheflorals.

Thank you so much! Makes me happy looking at it

 

[arkieb1]

Yes synthetic spinels and other synthetic stones (sapphires come to mind) can have things that intentionally look like real inclusions in them. Glass tests as glass, synthetic spinel tests the same as real spinel.

 

[Bron357]

Lab grown Spinel is grown to be exactly the same composition as natural Spinel so more specific testing/ microscopic analysis by a qualified lab/ gemologist is often necessary to distinguish between the two.
Also, in the 1920s and 1930s lab grown gems were very popular and found in quality jewelry as they were seen as being “exotic” rather than a cheap imitation. Back then, imitation was simply coloured glass.
Lab grown Spinel is not necessarily “flawless” it’s just that the inclusions or imperfections created in the crystal structure during lab manufacture differ from those found in natural Spinel. Even imitation glass gems have flaws, these are normally simple round air bubbles.
The attached photos are inclusions from natural Spinel.
Regardless, it’s a beautiful ring but if you want 100% certainty you would need to send it to AGL for a report.

 

[alltheflorals]

Thank you for the responses! Unfortunately I think the size disqualifies it from the GemBrief. The next option I would think of is ID from GIA...but the way things are trending, I'm reluctant to put more money into what could be synthetic and find out what I overspent...unless I can hold onto the hope that the setting is worth at least that . If it's worth anything, Chelsea filter was showing up just green - or is that moot for near colorless spinel? I'm going to try to find a local jeweler who can maybe measure RI for me to help narrow it down perhaps . Any other suggestions?

 

[Bron357]

Thank you for the responses! Unfortunately I think the size disqualifies it from the GemBrief. The next option I would think of is ID from GIA...but the way things are trending, I'm reluctant to put more money into what could be synthetic and find out what I overspent...unless I can hold onto the hope that the setting is worth at least that . If it's worth anything, Chelsea filter was showing up just green - or is that moot for near colorless spinel? I'm going to try to find a local jeweler who can maybe measure RI for me to help narrow it down perhaps . Any other suggestions?

The “problem” is that synthetic Spinel has the exact same RI as natural Spinel, they are the same chemical composition except one is lab grown the other dug out of the ground.
If you can find a jeweller who is also an accredited gemologist, an investigation under the microscope can often be sufficient. It will be the inclusions that say “man made” vs “natural”. Unless you do more detailed chemical/ spectrometry analysis.
The issue being that most jewelers, indeed even gem cutters, aren’t also qualified gemologists. They may have many decades of experience handling gem but being a gemologist is specific training. Some gems are easier to ID than others and the electronic testers that many jewellers/ pawn brokers use are handy for telling say CZ from diamond, garnet from ruby, Tourmaline from emerald, aquamarine from blue topaz or any quartz or glass imitations from real gems but the testing is done on thermal readings. Thats why the synthetic materials “read” the same as the natural material being very close to the same chemical composition.

 

[arkieb1]

Send it to someone like Dave Atlas or take it to one of the appraisers in the drop down list above. AGL would be my first choice, GIA second, outside of the US Lotus Lab is my first choice, but if not one of the reliable appraisers should be able to tell you if it's real or synthetic.

https://datlas.com/

 

[Mrs_Strizzle]

First off, your ring is quite lovely and I see why you were drawn to it. However I do understand your concern about investing more $ into it if it is synthetic. Honestly, my immediate reaction to the pictures was that it is synthetic. Like @T L said, it would be a VERY rare stone if natural. Also to answer your question that I don't believe anyone else touched on, I do not believe it is safe to assume that because of the lighter saturation it is less likely to be synthetic. Quite the opposite is true with spinel in the blue hue. Most natural blue is very gray and/or dark.