Vintage Russian Siberian Yakutian 1.84 CT Diamond ring

[InnaR]

Hi.I posted in the Antique & Vintage forum first, but noticed low level of activity there recently, so if moderators don't mind i'll post here too.
I'm in the market for an antique/vintage stone. Looking for something truly exquisite (prefere smaller size for a to die for performance). Yesterday i was researching archived topics on Pricescope on Vintage Russian diamonds and found out that vintage Russian diamonds considered to be the ones of the best by Pricescopers. I'm myself of Russian origin, and i noticed a long time ago that tiny Russian diamonds of my older Russian friends sparkle like crazy. I've never seen a Russian diamond bigger than .3-.4 (don't know the reason for that).

I stumbled on a vintage Russian ring. It looks like a fire ball even from the pictures. But since I've never seen a Soviet era ring like that with a diamond as large as this one, i'm not 100% sure in authenticity of the ring. There are no lab papers.

I would appreciate any opinions on whether this ring and diamond look authentic to Soviet era?
Center diamond size is slightly larger than 1.0, It's an I color and SI-2 (eye clean) clarity. Small diamonds are .80 ctw, H color, VS1-2 clarity.

Seller states that the ring is hallmarked with the capital letter E, then next to it Soviet Star and the hammer & sickle stamp and 750 that stands for 18K gold. Ring is being sold as Vintage Russian Siberian Yakutian 1.84 CT Diamond 18K Yellow White Gold Ring, circa 1960s.

 

[LGK]

Well, the style looks to be of the correct era, '60s. Frankly I know nothing about antique Russian/Soviet jewelry, however. However, the thing is that faking a hallmark like that would be kind of pointless- there wouldn't be much monetary incentive to do that, unlike, say, a fake Tiffany mark or somethign. So chances are, it's what it's supposed to be.

 

[InnaR]

LGK,
Thank you for your comment. I also hope that forging hallmarks on the setting would be too much of a hassle. I'm more worried about the stone. I have a friend of a Russian origin who was a jeweler back in Russia. I guess i can take it there to verify that the stone is truly yakutian diamond. Again, would it be .4 or less carat I wouldn't worry, but i have never seen a Russian diamond of that size. That makes it very exciting, but scary at the same time.
Would appreciate any additional comments and opinions.

 

[LGK]

Definitely have someone look at it in person. Unfortunately with a round brilliant, there's no way for anyone really to date it or identify it's origin online, at least I couldn't, that's for sure. In person there might be some clues. But, yes, I can't tell you how many settings get altered over the years to hold a different stone. I'd say, of the hundreds I see in a month at work, that about 1/10th of the estate pieces have the original center stone. Or even less than that. I think that I see more altered ones than some places might get, because one of the sellers at the antique store I work at tends to change out antique cuts for round brilliants as a matter of course ( !) but still, yes, it's quite common to see a new stone put into an old setting or vice versa.

 

[Amys Bling]

i hope that it all checks out to be what it is claiming to be!

 

[TristanC]

I am not an expert in any way or form, the only thing I have read is that soviet diamonds tend to be fairly small - smaller than 1ct at any rate. So I would wonder about the size and quality of the center stone if it came from the 60s. But they could easily have replaced the center with a modern round brilliant. Just need everything to check out once you get hands on. Good luck!

 

[denverappraiser]

Nope. There's not even good clues in person. Origin and age can be estimated by clues found on the mounting, the techniques, style and materials used, the cutting style and the history of the piece but there is NO direct test for either age or country of origin. I agree with the above that 60s vintage Soviet jewelry isn't something that likely would be counterfeited. That said, you still might benefit from a well done appraisal and he/she may be able to spot clues that you didn't think of but they WON'T be able to give a conclusive answer to this particular question.

 

[LGK]

One thing you might see if an appraiser can determine- if the head has ever been altered or switched out.

A stone from the 1960s would likely have a bruted girdle (frosted appearance). That might be one thing to check. Obviously not going to be a 100% guarantee it's original to the setting, but, it's a start I guess.

There are lots of things about antique pieces that frankly, unless you have really specific provenance, you aren't ever going to be able to know 100% for sure- I think shows like the Antiques Roadshow do people a disservice in that it tends to show people always get answers and learn exactly what they have, where IRL even if you talk to experts in the field, you may never get a 100% answer. I'd also talk to the seller and ask what they know about the ring's history, too.

 

[InnaR]

Thank you all for your very helpful replies and suggestions.
LGK, yes, the head wuold be the first place i'll look to see if it was altered. I'll also take it to appraiser to see if he can verify setting and stone. I really hope it turnes out to be original, as it would be the most unusual jewerly piece from Soviet era that i have seen so far.
The seller said that it belonged to Soviet physics scientist and was given to her by her well-connected husband as anniversary present. Ufter collapse of USSR they immigrated and her grandson is selling it right now.