Unheated Color Change Sapphire
21st Century and Contemporary Cocktail Rings
White Diamond, Sapphire, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Sri Lankan Loose Gemstones
Sapphire
20th Century Cluster Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
2010s Malagasy Loose Gemstones
Green Sapphire
2010s Sri Lankan Modern Engagement Rings
Blue Sapphire, Sapphire, Diamond, Platinum
21st Century and Contemporary Engagement Rings
Diamond, Blue Sapphire, Sapphire, 18k Gold, White Gold
2010s Thai Art Deco Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Emerald, Sapphire, Purple Sapphire, 18k Gold, Rose Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Thai Solitaire Rings
Sapphire, 14k Gold, White Gold
2010s Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
21st Century and Contemporary Sri Lankan Cluster Rings
Sapphire, Diamond, White Gold, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Contemporary Fashion Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Purple Sapphire, Platinum
2010s Sri Lankan Art Deco Engagement Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
2010s Sri Lankan Three-Stone Rings
Purple Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, Sapphire, Diamond, Platinum
2010s Loose Gemstones
Sapphire
Antique 19th Century Cluster Rings
Diamond, Blue Sapphire, Platinum
2010s Thai Modern Cocktail Rings
21st Century and Contemporary More Jewelry
Sapphire
21st Century and Contemporary Loose Gemstones
Sapphire
20th Century More Jewelry
Sapphire
2010s Burmese Loose Gemstones
Sapphire
20th Century More Jewelry
Sapphire
20th Century More Jewelry
Sapphire
20th Century More Jewelry
Sapphire
2010s Sri Lankan Loose Gemstones
Sapphire
2010s Sri Lankan Loose Gemstones
Sapphire
2010s Three-Stone Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold
Vintage 1970s English Modern Cluster Rings
Diamond, Blue Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Contemporary Engagement Rings
Diamond, White Diamond, Multi-gemstone, Sapphire, Pink Sapphire, Purple ...
2010s Hong Kong Contemporary Engagement Rings
Sapphire, Diamond, Gold, White Gold, 18k Gold
Vintage 1950s Retro Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Purple Sapphire, Platinum
2010s American Contemporary Cocktail Rings
Sapphire, Diamond, 18k Gold
2010s Northern Irish Contemporary Dangle Earrings
Diamond, Sapphire, Spinel, 18k Gold
2010s Northern Irish Contemporary Drop Earrings
Diamond, Morganite, Pearl, Sapphire, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary More Jewelry
Sapphire
21st Century and Contemporary Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
21st Century and Contemporary Loose Gemstones
Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, Green Sapphire, Purple Sapphire
21st Century and Contemporary Loose Gemstones
Sapphire, Pink Sapphire, Purple Sapphire
21st Century and Contemporary Loose Gemstones
Pink Sapphire, Purple Sapphire, Sapphire
21st Century and Contemporary Cocktail Rings
White Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold, Platinum
2010s Sri Lankan Loose Gemstones
Sapphire
Vintage 1940s French Retro Signet Rings
Diamond, White Diamond, Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow ...
21st Century and Contemporary Loose Gemstones
Pink Sapphire, Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, Green Sapphire
21st Century and Contemporary American Artisan Loose Gemstones
Sapphire
2010s Hong Kong Art Deco Engagement Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold, White Gold
Vintage 1930s Art Deco Solitaire Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
Unheated Color Change Sapphire For Sale on 1stDibs
How Much is a Unheated Color Change 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.
- What is a color-change sapphire?1 Answer1stDibs ExpertOctober 19, 2021A color-change sapphire is a type of sapphire that can change colors under different sources of light. The strength of this gemstone’s color change affects its value. Under incandescent light, the color of a color-change sapphire may range from a very violet-purple to a strongly reddish purple. Find antique and vintage sapphire jewelry on 1stDibs.
- 1stDibs ExpertOctober 12, 2021Color change sapphires are extremely rare gemstones that change colors under different lighting. When under daylight or its equivalent, the stone exhibits colors ranging from blue to violet — whereas, under incandescent light, the colors range from a purple we associate with violet to strongly reddish-purple. Find a collection of vintage sapphire jewelry on 1stDibs today.
- 1stDibs ExpertApril 5, 2022A synthetic color-change sapphire is a lab-grown sapphire with color shifting abilities. Color-changing sapphires generally change from a blue-purple hue to a deeper true violet shade. Shop a collection of synthetic and natural sapphire jewelry on 1stDibs.