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Barnebys HQ
Brahegatan 10
BOX 5038
114 37 Stockholm
All auctions / Jewellery & Gems / Retro Style Clip With Untreated Burma Rubies & Diamonds, W.A. Bolin
Sometimes we come across pieces that already make us think of a big name due to their exquisite materials and craftsmanship. This extravagant clip brooch, which has found its way to us from Hamburg, is one of them: With a wonderful setting of untreated rubies and glittering diamonds in solid gold, it combines some of the most luxurious materials in the jewellery world. The bold yet highly elegant design in the so-called Retro style solidifies the impression that a master of jewellery art must have been at work. A look at the back, where the hallmarks are hidden, soon confirms this premonition. In fact, the hallmark on this piece of jewellery indicates that it belongs to one of the most prestigious families of goldsmiths in the world: It is a work of the jeweller W. A. Bolin. Founded in 1790 by a Swede in the former Russian capital of St. Petersburg, Bolin, also known as the “House of Bolin” in English-speaking countries, was the court jeweller to five Russian tsars and three Swedish kings throughout its history. In 1916, a year before the Russian Revolution, the Bolin family moved the headquarters of their company to Stockholm, where it is still located in the noble Östermalm. Always on the cutting edge, the House of Bolin supplied the upper class of Europe’s metropolises and is mentioned in the same breath as Fabergé, whom it was considered to be a great rival of. As early as 1851, at the great exhibition at the Crystal Palace in London, one observer was carried away by the statement: “Mr. Bolin’s objects, with their perfect mountings, surpassed absolutely everything else at the exhibition.” Even today, Bolin’s works adorn the crowned heads of Europe. For example, the so-called “Vladimir Tiara” made by Bolin and brought to England by adventurous means is one of the favourite pieces of Queen Elizabeth II, and Bolin still supplies the Swedish royal family today. Thanks to Sweden’s accurate hallmarking system, we are able to date the brooch precisely to 1940. With its abstract draped design, warmly shimmering yellow gold, and diamond and ruby setting, this brooch speaks the formal language of the first half of the 1940s. The brooch is shown in the form of a stylised leaf, accompanied on the side by a delicious panicle of fruit. Like currants, five natural rubies shimmer here in intense red. Some of the untreated stones are even star rubies, over the surface of which a six-rayed star wanders when the light falls on it. An elegantly pierced arch with gold bars appears like a winding vine and gives the piece of jewellery a surprising modernity. We have had the value and quality of the materials used certified by an independent gemological institute. But, of course, this estimate does not take into account the exclusive origin of the piece of jewellery, which may represent the even greater attraction for collectors. Thus, this is a first-class unique piece with history - from a renowned house from which antique jewellery is rarely offered. The above quotation, as well as further information on the House of Bolin, can be found in Géza von Habsburg: Fabergé. Imperial Craftsman and His World, London 2000, p. 228 f. and 318 f.
Estimate:£9,250.29
To the auctionView all items fromHofer AntikschmuckorJewellery & Gems
Estimate:
£9,250.29
OCT 17 | 10:00 PM
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£1,950
Queen Victoria gold half sovereign, 1899, in a 9ct gold mount
10/01/2026
£320
Est: £300
