Arthur King Citrine Sapphire Diamond Gold Ring
View Similar Items
Arthur King Citrine Sapphire Diamond Gold Ring
About the Item
- Creator:
- Metal:
- Stone:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:20th Century
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:Mt. Kisco, NY
- Reference Number:1stDibs: JU13091629493
Arthur King
Self-taught American jeweler Arthur King worked with baroque pearls, geodes, and raw semi-precious gemstones to create distinctive modernist jewelry during the mid-20th century.
Like many of the accessories that populate our jewelry boxes, the forms of King’s provocative vintage brooches, necklaces, rings and other jewels were inspired by the natural world, but the pieces’ metalwork is sculptural and shapely, resembling gnarled tree branches or the surface of an elm’s aging trunk.
King was born in New Jersey in 1921. He became interested in art at a young age and was fascinated with the lost-wax casting technique practiced by some sculptors. King taught himself the process using scrap metals, and his jewelry and objets d’art would come to share common ground with abstract art in the years to come.
While stationed overseas in the Merchant Marines in World War II, King began to work with metal and dabble in jewelry making, integrating sharks’ teeth, white scrap metal and whatever else he could find into his modest “art jewelry,” a term that has been used to describe adornments created by Alexander Calder, pioneering African American studio jeweler Art Smith, Andrew Grima and others over the years. Upon returning from the war, King continued to develop his skills — eventually opening his first shop in New York City's Greenwich Village neighborhood.
King truly distinguished himself from other jewelers of the time — at his workbench, he shaped the brass and silver settings for his often unpolished, chunky stones that featured asymmetrical cuts and employed the age-old technique of lost-wax casting, which sees objects cast from wax models. His early pieces mainly featured silver settings, but his popularity soared once he began to craft jewelry in gold.
In 1961, King's work was exhibited at Goldsmiths’ Hall in London as part of the “International Exhibition of Modern Jewellery” and a year later, he opened his flagship store on Madison Avenue. His success allowed him to open more locations in London, Cape Cod, Havana, Miami and elsewhere.
King used a dizzying array of gems and other materials in his unconventional pieces. And as much as the jewelry of the 1960s featured eye-catching candy-colored stones, it was also an era of new textures and freeform gold settings, and King was at the forefront, creating audacious designs that contrasted sharply with the work of the world’s leading luxury houses.
King’s work has been celebrated at a range of institutions over the years including the Museum of Contemporary Crafts (now the Museum of Arts and Design), the Cultured Pearl Association of Japan, the Victoria and Albert Museum and more. His jewelry was exhibited at the Cincinnati Art Museum’s “Simply Brilliant: Artist-Jewelers of the 1960s and 1970s,” which opened in 2021.
On 1stDibs, find vintage Arthur King brooches, rings, necklaces and more.
- Princess Cut Diamond Yellow Sapphire Citrine Enamel 18k Yellow Gold Nova RingBy EDXÚLocated in London, GBInspired by our glittering yet mysterious galaxy, the Nova Ring is a puzzle of modern and galactic references. The Nova ring is a whimsical yet elegant desig...Category
21st Century and Contemporary British Art Deco Fashion Rings
MaterialsYellow Sapphire, Diamond, Citrine, Enamel, Yellow Gold, 18k Gold
- Citrine Diamond Gold Wide band ringBy Christina AddisonLocated in New York, NY18kt Yellow Gold Wide band ring with bezel set faceted Citrine and two rows of single set Diamond Accents all the way around. The ring can be made ...Category
21st Century and Contemporary American Contemporary Cocktail Rings
MaterialsCitrine, Diamond, White Diamond, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
- 18 Karat Yellow Gold Citrine Topaz and Sapphire RingLocated in Palm Springs, CAVintage ring with 18 karat yellow gold band, citrine topaz and sapphires for a total of 2.93 karats, Italy 1980s Ring size US 7Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Band Rings
MaterialsCitrine, Sapphire, Topaz, 18k Gold
- Kristina Diamond Citrine Ring 18K Gold BandLocated in East Brunswick, NJThis extraordinary ring is made by New York designer Kristina. The ring is crafted in solid 18K Yellow Gold and set with genuine Earth mined Citrine and dazzling white diamonds. The center checkerboard cut Citrine measures 13mm x 10mm (5.45 carats). This is a vibrant warm yellow gem...Category
Late 20th Century Contemporary Cocktail Rings
MaterialsCitrine, Diamond, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
- Citrine Diamond Yellow-Sapphire Gold RingLocated in Beverly Hills, CAA stylish ring featuring a checker-cut domed citrine weighing 9.30 carats. It has a rich and vibrant golden orange color and is haloed by 0.32 carats of round brilliant cut diamonds....Category
21st Century and Contemporary American Cocktail Rings
MaterialsCitrine, Diamond, Yellow Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
- Arthur King Geometric Ring Vintage 70s Band 18k Yellow Gold Sz 6.5 Fine JewelryBy Arthur KingLocated in Torrance, CAVintage Arthur King ring crafted in 18 karat yellow gold (circa 1970s). Crafted by artist and goldsmith Arthur King, the ring is made in the lost wax method with geometric pattern...Category
Late 20th Century American Modern Band Rings
MaterialsGold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold