Mystery Set Sapphire
Vintage 1970s American More Bracelets
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
20th Century Pendant Necklaces
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Late 20th Century Contemporary Cocktail Rings
White Diamond, Blue Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Late 20th Century French Cufflinks
Sapphire, 18k Gold
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Brooches
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold
20th Century Band Rings
Diamond, Blue Sapphire, 18k Gold, White Gold
Early 20th Century Stud Earrings
Diamond, Blue Sapphire, 18k Gold
Vintage 1970s French More Bracelets
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold, Platinum
20th Century French Brooches
White Diamond, Ruby, Blue Sapphire, Platinum
20th Century French Fashion Rings
Blue Sapphire, Sapphire, White Diamond, Diamond, Yellow Gold, 18k Gold, ...
Vintage 1980s Cuff Bracelets
Diamond, Blue Sapphire, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Late 20th Century French Cufflinks
Sapphire, 18k Gold, Platinum
2010s Thai Arts and Crafts Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Blue Sapphire, 18k Gold
Vintage 1980s Retro Clip-on Earrings
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Drop Earrings
Diamond, Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Brooches
Diamond, Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Drop Earrings
Blue Sapphire, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary North American Stud Earrings
Diamond, Sapphire, Yellow Gold
1990s Swiss Wrist Watches
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold, Platinum
Vintage 1970s French Retro Cufflinks
Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold
Vintage 1970s American Bangles
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold, Platinum
Vintage 1960s Italian Brooches
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold, White Gold
Vintage 1980s English Modern Brooches
Diamond, 18k Gold
American Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
21st Century and Contemporary Unknown Band Rings
Diamond, Blue Sapphire, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Unknown Modern Band Rings
2010s Swiss Brooches
White Diamond, Blue Sapphire, White Gold
Vintage 1980s French More Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
20th Century Pendant Necklaces
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Vintage 1980s American Cocktail Rings
Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, Diamond, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Cufflinks
Blue Sapphire, Platinum
21st Century and Contemporary American Clip-on Earrings
Diamond, Sapphire, Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Brooches
Diamond, Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Unknown Modern Dome Rings
Diamond, Blue Sapphire, 18k Gold
Vintage 1980s French Cocktail Rings
Blue Sapphire, White Diamond, 18k Gold, Platinum
20th Century Cocktail Rings
Sapphire, 18k Gold
Vintage 1960s Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Blue Sapphire, Platinum
1990s French Band Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Cufflinks
Diamond, Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold, White Gold, Yellow Gold
Vintage 1970s Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold
Vintage 1940s Unknown Retro More Bracelets
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold
Sapphire, Diamond, Platinum
20th Century Brooches
Diamond, Yellow Sapphire
Vintage 1950s Clip-on Earrings
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
Vintage 1980s French Fashion Rings
Sapphire, 18k Gold, White Gold
20th Century Pendant Necklaces
Diamond, Sapphire, White Gold, 18k Gold
20th Century Pendant Necklaces
Diamond, Pink Sapphire, 18k Gold, White Gold
2010s Lever-Back Earrings
Diamond, Pink Sapphire, 14k Gold, White Gold
Late 20th Century Contemporary Brooches
Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, Diamond, White Diamond, Gold, 18k Gold, White G...
2010s Thai Art Deco Pendant Necklaces
Blue Sapphire, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Art Deco Engagement Rings
Diamond, Emerald, Sapphire, Platinum
2010s Unknown Contemporary Brooches
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold, White Gold
Early 2000s Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Blue Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold
Vintage 1970s French Dome Rings
Diamond, Sapphire
20th Century American Brooches
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold
Mystery Set Sapphire For Sale on 1stDibs
How Much is a Mystery Set 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.