1940s Sapphire
Vintage 1940s French Brooches
Platinum
Vintage 1940s Unknown Drop Necklaces
Diamond, Emerald, Ruby, Blue Sapphire, 18k Gold
Mid-20th Century Unknown Retro Necklace Enhancers
Jade, Opal, Ruby, Sapphire, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
Early 20th Century Engagement Rings
Blue Sapphire, Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
Early 20th Century Cocktail Rings
Aquamarine, Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold, White Gold
Vintage 1940s Art Deco Engagement Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, Platinum
Vintage 1940s Retro Brooches
Ruby, Sapphire, Turquoise, 14k Gold
Vintage 1940s Unknown Retro Cocktail Rings
Citrine, Emerald, Blue Sapphire, 14k Gold
Vintage 1940s American Art Deco Brooches
Gilt Metal
Diamond, Ruby
Diamond, Peridot, Sapphire
Vintage 1940s Cluster Rings
Sapphire, 14k Gold
Vintage 1940s More Jewelry
Blue Sapphire, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
Unknown Cocktail Rings
Diamond
Vintage 1940s American Cufflinks
Sapphire, 14k Gold
Vintage 1940s American Retro Three-Stone Rings
Blue Sapphire, Diamond, Platinum
Vintage 1940s American Clip-on Earrings
Diamond, Sapphire, 14k Gold
Vintage 1940s American Retro Clip-on Earrings
Diamond, Ruby, Blue Sapphire, Pink Sapphire, Yellow Sapphire
Vintage 1940s Brooches
Sapphire, Diamond, Ruby, 18k Gold
Vintage 1940s American Retro More Earrings
Moonstone, Sapphire, 14k Gold
Vintage 1940s Unknown Retro Fashion Rings
Diamond, Ruby, Sapphire, 18k Gold, Platinum
Mid-20th Century English Retro Cocktail Rings
White Diamond, Blue Sapphire, Platinum
Vintage 1940s American Brooches
Sapphire, Diamond
Vintage 1940s American Link Bracelets
Cultured Pearl, Sapphire, 14k Gold
Mid-20th Century Unknown Retro Dome Rings
Blue Sapphire, 14k Gold
Vintage 1940s Cufflinks
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold
Vintage 1940s French Brooches
Blue Sapphire, Ruby, Sapphire, 18k Gold, White Gold
Vintage 1940s Italian Art Deco Bangles
Emerald, Ruby, Sapphire, 14k Gold
Vintage 1940s Retro More Earrings
Blue Sapphire, Emerald, 14k Gold
Vintage 1940s French Bangles
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold, Platinum
Mid-20th Century English Cluster Rings
White Diamond, Blue Sapphire, 18k Gold, White Gold
Vintage 1940s Unknown Retro Engagement Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
Vintage 1940s Swiss Retro Wrist Watches
White Diamond, Blue Sapphire, 14k Gold
Vintage 1940s American Link Bracelets
Blue Sapphire, White Diamond, 14k Gold
Vintage 1940s American Brooches
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
Vintage 1940s Link Bracelets
Diamond, Emerald, Ruby, Sapphire, 18k Gold
Vintage 1940s American Bangles
Diamond, Pink Sapphire, 14k Gold, 18k Gold
Mid-20th Century Lever-Back Earrings
Diamond, Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Vintage 1940s French Post-War Solitaire Rings
Diamond, Blue Sapphire, 18k Gold, Platinum
Vintage 1940s American Retro Bracelets
Gold Plate
Vintage 1940s American Cocktail Rings
Blue Sapphire, Diamond, Garnet, Moonstone, Onyx, Quartz, Ruby, 18k Gold,...
Vintage 1940s English Retro Engagement Rings
Diamond, Blue Sapphire, 18k Gold
Vintage 1940s British Retro Brooches
Diamond, Blue Sapphire, Platinum
Vintage 1940s Unknown Art Deco Engagement Rings
Blue Sapphire, White Diamond, Platinum
Vintage 1940s Unknown Cufflinks
Blue Sapphire, Diamond, Platinum, Yellow Gold
Mid-20th Century British Engagement Rings
Diamond, Sapphire
Vintage 1940s American Pendant Necklaces
Diamond, Ruby, Blue Sapphire, 14k Gold
Vintage 1940s British Retro Stud Earrings
Diamond, Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, 9k Gold, Yellow Gold
Vintage 1940s American Hoop Earrings
Diamond, Sapphire, 14k Gold
20th Century American Clip-on Earrings
Vintage 1940s Unknown Brooches
Emerald, Sapphire, 14k Gold
Vintage 1930s Unknown Art Deco Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Blue Sapphire, 18k Gold
Vintage 1940s Italian Cufflinks
Sapphire, 18k Gold
Vintage 1940s American Band Rings
Blue Sapphire, 14k Gold
Vintage 1940s American Art Deco Engagement Rings
Diamond, Blue Sapphire, 14k Gold
Vintage 1940s American Boxes and Cases
Diamond, Emerald, Ruby, Sapphire, Sterling Silver
20th Century British Art Deco Cluster Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
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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.