Antiques Roadshow

GUEST: It was my grandmother's ring that she bought in 1935.

Her diary, I have an entry that she purchased it in...Bangkok, Siam, which is now Thailand.

APPRAISER: Thailand.

GUEST: But I don't know if that was the stone or the setting that she purchased then, because I also have some family lore that she maybe got it in Ceylon, which is now Sri Lanka.

That part is one of my question marks, as is the actual setting, which I know is platinum.

I'd heard it might have been a Tiffany's setting from London or Paris Tiffany's at that time, but I couldn't find it in her journal to confirm that.

I just always heard that from my father.

APPRAISER: Yeah.

So what year did it actually come into your possession?

GUEST: I think I've had it about ten years.

APPRAISER: Do you wear it?

GUEST: (soft chuckle) I would love to wear it.

I tried to get it sized up to be able to wear it, but the very respected local jeweler said he wouldn't even touch it until I had an appraisal.

I have a little note that said it was appraised in 1951, but I don't have the appraisal.

I don't know what.

But I do have a-a verification from a lab that it's a natural sapphire.

APPRAISER: Well, that's very important in today's world.

Everyone wants natural color.

GUEST: Yes.

APPRAISER: And you have a very early cert from the G.I.A., 1969.

That is one of the earliest colored stone certs (laughs) in America, (laughs) and I have never seen one from the G.I.A, from that period.

So that, to me, is very, very interesting.

And they give a dimension.

They don't give a weight.

GUEST: Yeah.

APPRAISER: I measured it, and I'm coming up with around 15 plus carats.

GUEST: Oh, wow.

APPRAISER: So...

GUEST: That's wonderful.

APPRAISER: ...it's a big boy.

(both laugh) APPRAISER: And it's a beautiful stone.

What's interesting about a sapphire is usually, they are not emerald-cut.

It's very hard to get a brilliant emerald-cut.

This is a classic American Art Deco mounting.

It looks like the Chrysler Building.

So it's pure period American Art Deco from the mid-1930s.

So the mounting, as you know, is all platinum.

It's marked platinum, but the shoulders are all engraved platinum.

There's no other diamond in it.

This stone can stand by itself.

Now, of course, values change by country of origin.

Without a country of origin certificate...

GUEST: Mmm.

APPRAISER: ...I cannot tell you really what country it came from.

But I'm going to-- let's just say it's Ceylon.

GUEST: Okay.

APPRAISER: Uh, if it's a Ceylon, it's worth at least $10,000 a carat.

If it's a Burma, it's worth $20,000 a carat.

Now, if you hit the jackpot and it's a Kashmir, you're looking at $50,000 a carat.

So this ring, the lowest value at auction is $150,000 to $250,000.

GUEST: (laughing): Oh, my gosh.

APPRAISER: If it's a Burma, you're at $300,000.

If it's a Kashmir, you're at $750,000.

GUEST: (laughs) APPRAISER: So are you wearing it?

GUEST: (laughing): I mean... uh...

I guess I would have to have a very special occasion to put that on.

APPRAISER: Yeah.

GUEST: But, uh, wow.

APPRAISER: Yeah.

And once we can determine the country of origin, then you would, could have it insured.

GUEST: Yeah.

APPRAISER: And then worn, or not.

GUEST: Gotcha.

(laughs) APPRAISER: Well, I think you're a lucky gal.

GUEST: Wow.

APPRAISER: This is a fabulous ring, a fabulous stone.