Burmese Sapphire
Vintage 1910s Edwardian Cluster Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
21st Century and Contemporary Drop Necklaces
Diamond, Blue Sapphire, Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold
2010s Hong Kong Art Nouveau Engagement Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
20th Century Engagement Rings
Sapphire, Platinum
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Engagement Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Contemporary Three-Stone Rings
Diamond, White Diamond, Multi-gemstone, Sapphire, Platinum
Vintage 1970s American Cluster Rings
Blue Sapphire, Diamond, Platinum
21st Century and Contemporary American Beaded Necklaces
Sapphire, Gold, 14k Gold
Antique 1890s Unknown Brooches
Diamond, Sapphire, White Gold
Mid-20th Century Italian Engagement Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold
Vintage 1960s Three-Stone Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
20th Century American Modern Solitaire Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Vintage 1940s Art Deco Choker Necklaces
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
Vintage 1980s Three-Stone Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Vintage 1920s Unknown Link Necklaces
Diamond, Blue Sapphire, Platinum
21st Century and Contemporary British Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold, Platinum
Antique Mid-19th Century Cluster Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold, Silver
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, White Diamond, Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold, White Gold
Vintage 1950s Unknown Art Deco Engagement Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
Early 20th Century European Art Deco Cluster Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
2010s American Modern Drop Earrings
Diamond, Sapphire, Gold, 14k Gold, White Gold
2010s Italian Cocktail Rings
Sapphire, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Asian Art Deco Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold, White Gold
Antique Early 1900s Edwardian Cluster Rings
Diamond, White Diamond, Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, Platinum
Vintage 1930s Unknown Art Deco Band Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
21st Century and Contemporary Burmese Modern Engagement Rings
Diamond, White Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold, White Gold
Vintage 1930s Unknown Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, White Gold, Yellow Gold
1990s Unknown Cluster Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
21st Century and Contemporary Hong Kong Contemporary Engagement Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Cocktail Rings
White Diamond, Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Vintage 1960s Dome Rings
Blue Sapphire, Emerald, Platinum
2010s Hong Kong Contemporary Beaded Necklaces
Pearl, Sapphire, South Sea Pearl, 18k Gold
2010s American Contemporary Stud Earrings
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
21st Century and Contemporary American Contemporary Tennis Bracelets
Sapphire, 14k Gold, Rose Gold, White Gold, Yellow Gold, Gold
Vintage 1930s Unknown Cluster Rings
Sapphire, Diamond, Platinum, White Gold
Vintage 1930s French Art Deco Engagement Rings
Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, Diamond, White Diamond, Gold, 18k Gold, Platinum
Vintage 1980s Unknown Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, White Gold, Yellow Gold
1990s Brooches
Diamond, Ruby, Yellow Diamond, Emerald, Sapphire, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Japanese Modern Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Three-Stone Rings
Sapphire
20th Century American Art Deco Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Yellow Gold
Vintage 1940s Art Deco Cluster Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, White Gold
2010s American Contemporary Cocktail Rings
Blue Sapphire, Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold
2010s Hong Kong Contemporary Pendant Necklaces
Diamond, Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold, White Gold, Yellow Gold
Late 20th Century Italian Contemporary Bangles
Diamond, Emerald, Sapphire, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold, White Gold
Vintage 1970s American Link Necklaces
Diamond, Ruby, Blue Sapphire, Sapphire, Yellow Gold
Vintage 1920s Art Deco Cluster Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
21st Century and Contemporary French Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
20th Century American Contemporary More Necklaces
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
Vintage 1920s American Art Deco Engagement Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
2010s American Contemporary Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
Vintage 1980s American Retro Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
Vintage 1980s Engagement Rings
Sapphire, Gold
2010s Italian Modern More Jewelry
Diamond, White Diamond, Blue Diamond, Sapphire, Blue Sapphire
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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.