Help an ignoramus - diamond quality in an antique ring

[ManfredvonRichthofen]

Hello All

I am very new to all this so apologies for my general ignorance.
In short - I have been searching for an engagement ring. I have found an Art Deco ring (c. 1935) which I think fits the bill, save that I do not have any hard info on the diamond quality. The diamonds are not certificated.

The dealer has advised his estimates as follows (all applicable to the main central diamond):
- carat: approx 1.05 (he mentioned that this is in his view a conservative estimate)
- clarity VS2
- Color: J-K

In addition he has estimated the 6 shoulder diamonds to weigh 1.06 carats together.

The price is USD 11,400 - negotiated down from USD 15,000.
I am Europe based if that matters.

I would like to buy it but the lack of certification does give me a bit of cause for concern. As I mentioned I am really quite ignorant about these things so am not really in a position to judge what Is and is not a good quality diamond. There is no real possibility of getting any certification and there is some time pressure here.

It really is not important for me to get the very best quality diamonds. That said, I don't want to a) buy something terrible, or b) pay way over the odds for mediocre/poor quality diamonds.

I suspect it is impossible for anyone to give proper advice based on photos (even If they had been good quality ones), but I thought I would see if anyone here might have any views or thoughts based on the above and the attached photos. Do these diamonds look terrible ? Am I about to pay over the odds ? Impossible to tell on the info provided ? Any general thoughts ?

Many thanks and all the best

Manfred

 

[tyty333]

Personally, I think $11.400 is too much. I'll give you examples of cost of those stones. Keep in mind that these stones are
certified.

I picked this stone because it is long...would not have picked it if someone just wanted a well cut oval.
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/emerald-cut/1.02-carat-j-color-vs2-clarity-sku-554666 $3200

Side Stones...
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/emerald-cut/0.38-carat-i-color-vs1-clarity-sku-1797671 $500x2

Another $1200 for the other side stones totals to about $5400. Throw in the setting for about $2k (I'm thinking David Klass
pricing) brings you to about $7400.

So, the issue is this is for a new ring and what you are looking at is an old historic ring. Some things you can not put
a price on. Plus, this is US cost. Are you in Europe? Aren't diamonds/jewelry pieces more expensive over there?

Dont know what to advise you...just thought I would provide you with a little more info.

Edit...forgot to say that I like it and I think it is a beautiful ring.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Gorgeous ring!!! Wow! But I agree that the price is way to high if the optimistic estimate for the diamond color is J-K. I'd offer about $8k USD max.

 

[dk168]

I have no idea about pricing, however, I love the design of this ring, thanks for sharing!

DK

 

[ManfredvonRichthofen]

Thank you for your responses.
Yes, I get the impression that things are generally a bit more pricey here in England.

I do not mind paying a bit of a premium because I like the design. My main concern was with the colour as the stones do seem to carry some colour. But I suppose I am just mostly a bit uncomfortable paying such a large amount of money without certificates. That is not to say I have any reason to mistrust the seller, it would just be nice to get someone knowledgable and independent to take a look before buying.

Thanks again

 

[Hounddog]

Hi ManfredvonRichthofen,

The ring you like looks fabulous. Please don't forget there are taxes etc that you have to pay to import into the UK and it really does add up, especially if what you're buying is a decent price to start with! There's an official website you can calculate it on if you search the relevant wording it will pop up.

I presume you've thought about having something very similar made for you in the UK, there are some good Independant jewellers making items around and that way you could have a great experience, choose your own stones, cut out the middleman and avoid import fees.

I'm sure people could recommend UK jewellers they've worked with.

Good Luck with your searches.

 

[maccers]

The other question you should be asking is if those diamonds perform well. Step cuts are tricky and you may not like how the centre stone reflects light.

That said, I love the design of the ring but I think you could do better on pricing.

 

[lovedogs]

Agree with other posters that while I love the design of the ring, I would be extremely hesitant to pay that much money without any certification of the diamonds. I wonder if the seller would be willing to send the stone to an appraiser (I am not an expert so unsure what an appraiser could do with stones already set). That would hopefully at least provide more confidence about the quality.

In the absence of that, I think that anything over 8-9K seems overpriced.

Also, definitely make sure that you've seen/gotten videos of how the stones perform in different lighting situations. You'd want to make sure the stones look great indoors, outdoors, under low light, etc. Because they may not look as good outside of store lights, in which case I'd avoid it altogether.

Overall I'd recommend looking into having this re-created using certified stones (unless it can be sent to an appraiser). Keep us posted!

 

[Gypsy]

The ring is lovely. Send to Neal Beaty or David Atlas for an appraisal.

I don't see anything wrong in terms of performance.

Keep in mind that the setting is very restrictive. And diamonds are graded table down. And I doubt anyone can see the pavilion the way it is set. So if it is facing up tinted, it's hard to tell what the actual color is going to be. And I should NOT unset the stones to find out what the actual color is, in this case.

If it appraises at retail replacement value well I might be okay with price.

 

[clearfading]

Does this band move you at all? I couldn't help but think of their similiarity style wise when I saw this on Grace's site. This jeweler is highly recommended on this forum and the appraiser is very well trusted.

http://www.jewelsbygrace.com/rings/rings-bands-anniversary-eternity-and-wedding/1-01tcw-emerald-cut-diamond-5-stone-band#.V7sAcVeJqqQ