Timeless Treasures


Home
Gem Settings
Search All
For Pearls
Browse All
Antique Gemstones set in Contemporary Jewelry
Custom Jewelry

Earrings Styles (Dangles)

Rings (without gemstones)
14kt Gold
10kt Gold
Sterling Silver
Chain
14kt Gold
Gold Fill
Sterling Silver
Custom Bails
Custom Bails for Pendants and Chain

Hand Carved Scrimshaw Pendants

Pearl Settings

Tie Tacks

Contact us

For Customers outside of USA

Two Antique Genuine Natural Russian One Carat Faceted Oval White Topaz Semi-Precious Gemstones.

CLASSIFICATION: White Topaz Faceted Ovals.

ORIGIN: The Ural Mountains, Russia. 19th Century.

SIZE: Length: 7mm. Width: 5mm. Depth: 4mm (thickness).

WEIGHT: 1.98 carats (the pair).

NOTES: Upon request we can set your gemstones as a ring, pendant, or as earrings .

DETAIL: In the ancient world topaz came from Topazion, an Island in the Red Sea now called Zabargad. In the ancient world, topaz was thought to protect against evil and to the ancient Egyptians, the sparkle of topaz symbolized "Ra", their sun god. Two nice, eye clean, faceted oval white topaz semi-precious gemstones, with much the sparkle and flash of diamond. Used for centuries as a diamond substitute in Russia, while not absolutely flawless, these are gorgeous crystal-like faceted ovals cut from good quality topaz. To the eye the gemstones are clean, and even under a 5x glass there are no significant inclusions. The images here are a magnification level of five, so you can good a good idea of the relative quality. They truly are very beautiful gemstones, and to the naked eye, have the appearance of being flawless, and indeed look like large oval cut diamonds. The trained eye will easily discern from the photo that the gemstones have been hand-faceted. The coarseness of the 19th century faceting is considered appealing to most gemstone collectors, and is not considered a detriment. Unlike today's computer controlled machine processes, the cut and finish of gemstones such as these is the legacy of an artisan who lived two centuries ago. Such antique hand-faceted gemstones possess much greater character and appeal than today's mass-produced machine-faceted gemstones.

These gemstones have great lustre, vibrant color, and are more or less transparent; but they are not anywhere near flawless. True, the blemishes they possess are near invisible to the naked eye, and the gemstones could be characterized, to use trade jargon, as "near eye clean". However magnified six times over, as they are here, you can see minor imperfections (included material) both within the stones and occasional irregularities in the polish. However bear in mind that these characteristics are not only expected of hand-finished gemstones, you must also consider that two centuries ago the mining techniques prevalent did not allow the ultra deep mining operations which are so common today.

Two centuries ago mankind was more or less limited to surface deposits or near surface deposits of semi-precious gemstones. Higher quality gemstones which today are routinely mined from beneath hundreds of meters, even kilometers beneath the earth's surface, were simply inaccessible. So antique gemstones must be appreciated as antiques first, gemstones second. The relatively superlative quality of contemporary gemstones mined from deep beneath the earth's surface were simply not accessible two centuries ago, or at least, only rarely so. But for most, the unique nature and character of these antique gemstones more than makes up for included imperfections which by and large are only visible under magnification.

SHIPPING OPTIONS: All purchases are backed by an unlimited guarantee of satisfaction and authenticity. If for any reason you are not entirely satisfied with your purchase, you may return it for a complete and immediate refund of your entire purchase price. Most of these antique gemstones were originally part of two collections, one originating in India principally composed of gemstones originally mined in India, Burma, Ceylon, and Siam, and then hand faceted in India. The addition of a second accumulation of antique gemstones originally mined in the Urals in the mid to late 19th century (including alexandrite) completed the collection. These gemstones as well were hand finished. The Urals have been one of the world's major sources of precious and semi-precious gemstones for many centuries. As well, additional specimens are occasionally acquired from other institutions and dealers in Eastern Europe and Asia. These antique gemstones are now in the United States and are available for immediate delivery.

We ship inventory from the USA order fulfillment center near Seattle, Washington. Your purchase will ordinarily be shipping within 48 hours of payment. A certificate of authenticity is available upon request. We prefer your personal check or money order over any other form of payment - and we will ship immediately upon receipt of your check (no "holds"). We will accept PayPal payments. Please see our "ADDITIONAL TERMS OF SALE".