Vintage Tanzanite 5-Stone Ring

Vintage Tanzanite 5-Stone RingVintage five stone ring set with pretty, watery purple tanzanite gemstones in bezel settings surrounded by an openworked scalloped gallery. It dates from the 1970s and English import marks inside the band confirm that it's crafted in solid 9 carat gold. Tanzanite is a relatively 'new' gemstone. First discovered in Tanzania in 1967, it's a vivid blue variety of zoisite a mineral that has been known since the early 1800s. The story goes that Maasai

and the sides of the ring are beautifully hand carved

and 1896 as the year it was made

Era: Edwardian circa 1910Length: 16 inchesCentral drop: 3

One of the diamonds is a rose cut

The crescent is shallow and slender

Complete with the original bail

the yellow sapphire points north

The cross bears a striking similarity to one features on the cover of the British Museum Press's 1978 book Jeweller's Art: Hull Grundy Gift to the British Museum (by Charlotte Gere & Hugh Tait)

tested as 23 carat gold plated

and a further two are nestled in the middle

Swiss Assay Mark

The transition to neoclassical was neatly illustrated by a series of porcelains gifted to Marie Antoinette by King Louis XVI