1940s Sapphire
20th Century French Boxes and Cases
Sapphire, 18k Gold
Vintage 1940s American Art Deco Wrist Watches
18k Gold, White Gold
Vintage 1940s Unknown Brooches
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
Mid-20th Century More Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Gold
Mid-20th Century American Retro Brooches
Diamond, Sapphire, Gold, 14k Gold, White Gold, Yellow Gold
Vintage 1940s Unknown Brooches
Blue Sapphire, Diamond, 14k Gold, Platinum
20th Century Unknown Art Deco Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Blue Sapphire, 18k Gold, White Gold
Vintage 1940s French Retro Signet Rings
Diamond, White Diamond, Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow ...
Vintage 1940s Retro Clip-on Earrings
Blue Sapphire, 18k Gold
Vintage 1940s French Retro Three-Stone Rings
Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold, Rose Gold
Vintage 1940s French Retro Cocktail Rings
Diamond, White Diamond, Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow ...
Mid-20th Century French Link Bracelets
Diamond, Emerald, Sapphire, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Mid-20th Century Engagement Rings
Diamond, Blue Sapphire, Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold, Palladium, White Gold
Mid-20th Century Unknown Clip-on Earrings
White Diamond, Blue Sapphire, Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
Mid-20th Century Engagement Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, Platinum
Vintage 1940s Art Deco Band Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
Vintage 1940s Art Deco Band Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
Vintage 1930s Art Deco Engagement Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
Vintage 1940s Drop Earrings
Diamond, Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold
Vintage 1950s Retro Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, 14k Gold, White Gold
Early 20th Century Art Deco Link Bracelets
Diamond, Platinum
Mid-20th Century Unknown Contemporary Lever-Back Earrings
Diamond, Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, 18k Gold, White Gold
Vintage 1940s French Retro Boxes and Cases
Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, 18k Gold
Mid-20th Century Unknown Art Deco Brooches
Diamond, Emerald, Sapphire, Ruby, Rose Gold
Vintage 1940s French Retro Boxes and Cases
Sapphire, 18k Gold
Vintage 1940s French Retro Boxes and Cases
Sapphire, 18k Gold
Vintage 1970s French Retro Brooches
Diamond, Ruby, Sapphire, 18k Gold
Vintage 1940s Retro Three-Stone Rings
Moonstone, Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, Gold, 14k Gold, White Gold
Mid-20th Century Unknown Art Deco Cocktail Rings
White Diamond, Blue Sapphire, Platinum
Vintage 1940s Unknown Retro Fashion Rings
Blue Sapphire, Diamond, Sapphire, White Diamond, Platinum
Vintage 1940s American Modern Brooches
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
Vintage 1940s Retro Cluster Rings
Moonstone, Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, 14k Gold, White Gold
Vintage 1940s Retro Fashion Rings
Sapphire, 14k Gold, White Gold, Yellow Gold
Mid-20th Century Unknown Art Deco Link Bracelets
White Diamond, Blue Sapphire, 18k Gold, White Gold
Vintage 1940s Retro Signet Rings
Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, Gold, Yellow Gold, 14k Gold
20th Century American Modern Brooches
Ruby, Sapphire, 14k Gold, Rose Gold
Vintage 1940s Solitaire Rings
Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, Star Sapphire, Gold, 14k Gold, White Gold
Vintage 1940s American Artisan Drop Earrings
Diamond, Blue Sapphire, Palladium
Vintage 1940s French Retro Signet Rings
Diamond, White Diamond, Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold, White Gold
Vintage 1940s Unknown Engagement Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold, Platinum
Mid-20th Century Retro Cocktail Rings
Vintage 1940s Unknown Art Deco Solitaire Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
Vintage 1940s Unknown Retro More Bracelets
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold
Vintage 1940s Unknown Art Deco Cluster Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold, Platinum
Vintage 1940s Unknown Art Deco Engagement Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold, Platinum
Mid-20th Century French Retro Dome Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold
20th Century Unknown Retro Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Pink Sapphire, 14k Gold, Rose Gold, Palladium
Vintage 1940s Retro Three-Stone Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, 14k Gold, White Gold, Yellow Gold
Vintage 1940s British Art Deco Three-Stone Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold, White Gold
Vintage 1940s French Modern Brooches
Blue Sapphire, Diamond, Emerald, 18k Gold
Vintage 1940s Unknown Engagement Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
Vintage 1940s Unknown Cluster Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold, Platinum
Mid-20th Century Unknown Retro More Jewelry
Moonstone, Blue Sapphire, Pink Sapphire, 14k Gold
Vintage 1940s Retro Cocktail Rings
Aquamarine, Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
Vintage 1940s Unknown Art Deco Cluster Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold
Vintage 1940s Unknown Art Deco Three-Stone Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold, Platinum
Mid-20th Century Unknown More Rings
Diamond, Blue Sapphire, 18k Gold, White Gold
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1940s Sapphire For Sale on 1stDibs
How Much is a 1940s Sapphire?
The Legacy of Sapphire in Jewelry Design
On 1stDibs, shop the bright blue gems that star in sapphire rings, sapphire necklaces and other vintage and antique sapphire jewelry.
Sapphires — the stone of choice for Napoleon, Princess Diana and Elizabeth Taylor — have been a favorite of aristocrats and the well-to-do since the time of the Ancient Greeks.
Picture a sapphire. If the stone you conjure is a deep cornflower blue, you’re seeing only part of the picture. Although blue Kashmirs are considered the most valuable, sapphires come in every color except red. No matter the hue, this very special gem is rich in history and beloved by royals (FYI, Princess Diana and Kate Middleton share an 11-carat sapphire engagement ring), so September babies are in very noble company.
America’s version of royalty — old money and celebrities — have also shown a predilection for the blue stones. In 1940, John D. Rockefeller Jr. had Cartier mount a 62-carat sapphire he had bought from an Indian maharajah in a brooch for his first wife, Abby Aldrich Rockefeller; in 2001, the piece sold for a then-record of $3,031,000 at Christie’s New York.
The grand dame of jewelry, Elizabeth Taylor had a passion for the gems that her lovers were happy to indulge. Second husband Michael Wilding gave her an engagement ring set with a cabochon sapphire, while Richard Burton famously presented her with a BVLGARI sautoir set with diamonds and sapphires, including at its center a cabochon Burmese weighing 52.72 carats. One of the star lots in the sale of Taylor’s jewels at the Christie’s New York in 2011, it sold for $5,906,500.
You don’t have to have blue blood or a bulging bank account, however, to get an eyeful of this much-coveted gem. A number of outstanding examples reside in public collections.
The Smithsonian Museum of Natural History owns the 423-carat Logan sapphire, a gift from the Guggenheim family, and the Hall sapphire and diamond necklace, designed by Harry Winston and featuring 36 fine, well-matched cushion-cut Sri Lankan sapphires weighing a combined 195 carats. Also in the collection is the Bismarck sapphire necklace, designed by Cartier and sporting a central sapphire weighing 98.6 carats, which Mona Von Bismarck donated to the museum.
Sapphires are composed of corundum. Their color derives from trace elements, such as iron, titanium, chromium, copper or magnesium. When the trace element produces a ruby hue, the stone is called, what else, a ruby. (which is, as mentioned above, why sapphires cannot be red by definition).
The allure of large gemstones endures throughout the periods characterized as vintage, and sapphire features frequently in vintage engagement rings. (On 1stDibs, a range of buying guides can be found for those in the market for antique engagement rings, vintage engagement rings or Art Deco engagement rings.)
Find an exquisite collection of vintage and antique sapphire jewelry on 1stDibs.