Burmese Sapphire
Antique 1890s British High Victorian Bangles
Diamond, Ruby, Sapphire, 18k Gold, Gold, Yellow Gold
Vintage 1940s French Brooches
Diamond, Emerald, Ruby, Sapphire, 18k Gold
Antique 1860s British Brooches
Diamond, Emerald, Ruby, Sapphire, 18k Gold, Silver
Vintage 1970s Cocktail Rings
Blue Sapphire, Diamond, White Gold
Antique Early 1900s Solitaire Rings
Blue Sapphire, Platinum
21st Century and Contemporary Cocktail Rings
English Cluster Rings
Sapphire, Diamond, Platinum
Sapphire
Vintage 1960s French Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Sapphire
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Link Bracelets
Yellow Diamond, Sapphire, 14k Gold, White Gold, Platinum
Vintage 1920s French Art Deco Engagement Rings
Sapphire, Platinum
Vintage 1970s Italian Fashion Rings
Diamond, Sapphire
Late 20th Century Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold, Platinum
Vintage 1950s British Engagement Rings
Blue Sapphire, Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum, Yellow Gold
20th Century Italian Edwardian Cluster Rings
Sapphire, 18k Gold
Vintage 1950s Three-Stone Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
Vintage 1950s More Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
Mid-20th Century Engagement Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold
2010s Unknown Cocktail Rings
Blue Sapphire, Diamond, 18k Gold
Vintage 1960s American Engagement Rings
Blue Sapphire, White Diamond, Platinum
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Beaded Necklaces
Diamond, Emerald, Blue Sapphire, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Unknown Modern Cocktail Rings
White Diamond, Blue Sapphire, Platinum
Vintage 1930s British Art Deco Engagement Rings
Diamond, Blue Sapphire, Platinum
Antique Early 1900s French Edwardian Engagement Rings
Blue Sapphire, Platinum
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Cocktail Rings
Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, Other, 18k Gold, Rose Gold, White Gold, Yellow ...
21st Century and Contemporary American Fashion Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
Antique Late 19th Century French Victorian Bangles
Blue Sapphire, Diamond
21st Century and Contemporary Burmese Contemporary Loose Gemstones
Sapphire, Blue Sapphire
21st Century and Contemporary American Contemporary Fashion Rings
Blue Sapphire, White Diamond, 18k Gold, Platinum
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Three-Stone Rings
Early 20th Century Unknown Art Deco Dome Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
21st Century and Contemporary American Pendant Necklaces
Blue Sapphire, Diamond, White Diamond, Platinum
Vintage 1950s Unknown Cufflinks
Sapphire, Yellow Gold
Antique Late 19th Century Victorian Brooches
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold
Vintage 1950s American Engagement Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
Vintage 1910s Edwardian Solitaire Rings
Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, Platinum
Vintage 1980s French Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Blue Sapphire, 18k Gold
Vintage 1940s Unknown Three-Stone Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Palladium
Antique Early 1900s American Belle Époque Engagement Rings
Diamond, Blue Sapphire
Antique Late 19th Century Victorian Engagement Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Vintage 1920s Unknown Engagement Rings
Sapphire
Late 20th Century Contemporary Engagement Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold
Vintage 1950s Burmese Contemporary Loose Gemstones
Sapphire, Blue Sapphire
Vintage 1970s Italian Engagement Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, 18k Gold
Early 20th Century British Engagement Rings
Blue Sapphire, Diamond, 18k Gold
Late 20th Century Contemporary Fashion Rings
Diamond, White Diamond, Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, Platinum
21st Century and Contemporary Burmese Modern Loose Gemstones
Sapphire, Blue Sapphire
Vintage 1960s American Cocktail Rings
White Diamond, Blue Sapphire, Platinum
2010s Hong Kong Contemporary Drop Earrings
Diamond, White Diamond, Yellow Diamond, Rock Crystal, Blue Sapphire, Sap...
Early 20th Century Burmese Art Deco Cocktail Rings
Diamond, White Diamond, Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, Platinum
Vintage 1910s Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Yellow Gold, Silver
Vintage 1960s Unknown Retro Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, Platinum
Vintage 1920s Art Deco Clip-on Earrings
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
Vintage 1910s French Edwardian Wedding Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, Platinum
2010s Contemporary Engagement Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
21st Century and Contemporary American Contemporary Engagement Rings
Diamond, Blue Sapphire, Sapphire, Platinum
Vintage 1970s French Cluster Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold, White Gold
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Burmese Sapphire For Sale on 1stDibs
How Much is a Burmese 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.