Bulgari Cabochon
Vintage 1970s Italian Chain Bracelets
Diamond, Blue Sapphire, 18k Gold, Gold
Early 2000s Italian Contemporary Fashion Rings
18k Gold, Yellow Gold
20th Century Italian Retro Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold
Vintage 1970s Italian Band Rings
Ruby, Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold
Vintage 1980s Link Bracelets
Diamond, Ruby, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Vintage 1980s Band Rings
Tourmaline, 18k Gold
Vintage 1980s Italian Chain Necklaces
Sapphire, 18k Gold
Vintage 1980s Italian More Rings
Ruby, Gold
Vintage 1980s Italian Cocktail Rings
Emerald, Sapphire, 18k Gold, Gold
1990s Italian Modern Choker Necklaces
Peridot, Tourmaline, 18k Gold
Vintage 1980s Modern Pendant Necklaces
Diamond, White Diamond, Ruby, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold, White Gold
Vintage 1980s Drop Earrings
Peridot, Tourmaline, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Vintage 1980s Italian More Jewelry
Amethyst, Ruby, 18k Gold
1990s Italian Stud Earrings
Diamond, Tourmaline, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Vintage 1980s Italian Wrist Watches
Blue Sapphire, Gold
Vintage 1980s Italian Cocktail Rings
Sapphire, Tourmaline, 18k Gold
Vintage 1980s European Dome Rings
Sapphire, Gold, Platinum
Vintage 1980s Italian Clip-on Earrings
Chrysophrase, 18k Gold
Late 20th Century Clip-on Earrings
Diamond, Emerald, Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
20th Century Italian Retro Retro Bracelets
Diamond, Emerald, Ruby, 18k Gold
Vintage 1970s Italian Dome Rings
Ruby, Sapphire, 18k Gold
Late 20th Century Italian Stud Earrings
Ruby, Gold, 18k Gold
20th Century Italian Drop Earrings
Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Vintage 1980s Stud Earrings
Ruby, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Italian More Rings
Citrine, White Gold
Vintage 1980s Drop Earrings
Emerald, Tourmaline, 18k Gold
Vintage 1970s Bangles
Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
2010s Link Necklaces
Sapphire
Late 20th Century Fashion Rings
Topaz, Blue Topaz, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Vintage 1980s Cocktail Rings
Amethyst, Citrine, 18k Gold
20th Century Italian Clip-on Earrings
Sapphire, White Gold, Yellow Gold
Vintage 1980s Italian Modern Dome Rings
Amethyst, 18k Gold, White Gold
20th Century Italian Contemporary Vanity Items
Sapphire, 18k Gold
Vintage 1980s Italian Stud Earrings
Coral, Chrysophrase, Gold, 18k Gold
Vintage 1970s Modern Dome Rings
Rubelite, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Vintage 1980s Italian Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Peridot, Tourmaline, Gold, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Contemporary Modern Bracelets
Amethyst, Citrine, Peridot, Tourmaline, Blue Topaz, 18k Gold
Vintage 1960s Italian Link Bracelets
Coral, Diamond, Emerald, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold, Platinum
Late 20th Century Italian Clip-on Earrings
Citrine, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Late 20th Century Italian Cocktail Rings
Topaz, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Late 20th Century More Objets d'Art and Vertu
Blue Sapphire, Sapphire, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
2010s Chain Necklaces
Diamond, Blue Sapphire
20th Century Italian Modern Clip-on Earrings
Diamond, Sapphire, Turquoise, 18k Gold
20th Century Italian Beaded Necklaces
Citrine, Diamond, Pearl, Topaz, Tourmaline, Yellow Gold
20th Century Clip-on Earrings
Diamond, Turquoise, 18k Gold
Vintage 1970s Italian Chain Necklaces
Crystal, Diamond, Rock Crystal, Sapphire, 18k Gold
Vintage 1980s Brooches
Crystal, Ruby, Tourmaline, 18k Gold
Late 20th Century Contemporary Vanity Items
Blue Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold, White Gold, Yellow Gold
Late 20th Century Italian Cocktail Rings
Crystal, Diamond, Rock Crystal, Ruby, Gold, 18k Gold
Vintage 1970s Italian Chain Necklaces
Diamond, Sapphire, Gold
20th Century Italian Clip-on Earrings
Emerald, Ruby, White Gold, Yellow Gold
Vintage 1980s Italian Contemporary Cuff Bracelets
Diamond, Pearl, Ruby, Sapphire, 18k Gold, Gold, Yellow Gold
1990s Italian Clip-on Earrings
Citrine, Iolite, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Vintage 1960s Italian Brooches
Blue Sapphire, White Diamond, 18k Gold
1990s Italian Contemporary Cocktail Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, Platinum
2010s Italian Fashion Rings
Diamond, Peridot, Tourmaline, Blue Topaz, 18k Gold, White Gold
Vintage 1970s Drop Earrings
Iolite, Ruby, Tourmaline, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Late 20th Century Italian Multi-Strand Necklaces
Hematite, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
Late 20th Century Band Rings
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold
Late 20th Century Clip-on Earrings
Peridot, Ruby, Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
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Bulgari Cabochon For Sale on 1stDibs
How Much is a Bulgari Cabochon?
Bulgari for sale on 1stDibs
Greek silversmith Sotirios Voulgaris arrived in Rome in 1881 and set up his own shop there in 1884, calling it Bulgari, an Italianization of his last name (in the brand's logo, it's styled BVLGARI, using the classical Latin alphabet in a nod to ancient Roman culture). In 1905, he opened the company’s flagship boutique on Rome’s Via dei Condotti. Since then, Bulgari has looked to Rome as a source of reference for its fanciful and decidedly romantic designs for necklaces, bracelets, earrings and other accessories.
Although the iconic jewelry house found success with its silverwork and Art Deco designs, popular through the 1920s, Bulgari’s signature style — bold, often using yellow gold embellished with big colorful gemstones — began to emerge when Sotirios’s sons inherited the business, in 1932.
The brand truly hit its stride in the dolce vita era of the 1950s and ’60s, when the founder’s grandsons Paolo, Gianni and Nicola Bulgari decisively departed from demure traditional styles to develop the house’s exuberant multi-gem looks, attracting celebrity collectors like Elizabeth Taylor.
In the 1940s, Bulgari debuted perhaps its most famous design, the Serpenti bracelet watch. The piece’s snakelike coils were made possible by the tubogas jewelry technique, which links a flexible series of thin horizontal bands. Both the sleek, modern tubogas construction and the sinuous snake motif continue to be synonymous with the Bulgari brand.
On 1stDibs, the collection of vintage Bulgari jewelry includes rings, pendant necklaces, watches and other accessories.
Why Gold Shines in Jewelry Craftsmanship
Gold is the feel-good metal, the serotonin of jewelry. Wear vintage and antique gold necklaces, watches, gold bracelets or gold rings and you feel happy, you feel dressed, you feel, well, yourself.
Gold, especially yellow gold, with its rich patina and ancient pedigree going back thousands of years, is the steady standby, the well-mannered metal of choice. Any discussion of this lustrous metal comes down to a basic truth: Gold is elementary, my dear. Gold jewelry that couples the mystique of the metal with superb design and craftsmanship achieves the status of an enduring classic. Many luxury houses have given us some of our most treasured and lasting examples of gold jewelry over the years.
Since its founding, in 1837, Tiffany & Co. has built its reputation on its company jewelry as well as its coterie of boutique designers, which has included Jean Schlumberger, Donald Claflin, Angela Cummings and Elsa Peretti. There are numerous gold Tiffany classics worth citing. Some are accented with gemstones, but all stand out for their design and the workmanship displayed.
For the woman who prefers a minimalist look, the Tiffany & Co. twist bangle (thin, slightly ovoid) is stylishly simple. For Cummings devotees, signature pieces feature hard stone inlay, such as her pairs of gold ear clips inlaid with black jade (a play on the classic Chanel black and tan), or bangles whose design recalls ocean waves, with undulating lines of lapis lazuli and mother-of-pearl. And just about any design by the great Jean Schlumberger is by definition a classic.
Even had he eschewed stones and diamonds, Southern-born David Webb would be hailed for the vast arsenal of heavy gold jewelry he designed. Gold, usually hammered or textured in some manner, defines great David Webb jewelry. The self-taught jeweler made very au courant pieces while drawing inspiration from ancient and out-of-the-way sources — East meets West in the commanding gold necklaces made by Webb in the early 1970s. The same could be said for his endlessly varied gold cuffs.
In Europe, many houses have given us gold jewelry that sets the highest standard for excellence, pieces that were highly sought after when they were made and continue to be so.
Numerous designs from Cartier are homages to gold. There are the classic Trinity rings, necklaces and bracelets — trifectas of yellow, white and rose gold. As a testament to the power of love, consider the endurance of the Cartier Love bracelet.
Aldo Cipullo, Cartier’s top in-house designer from the late 1960s into the early ’70s, made history in 1969 with the Love bracelet. Cipullo frequently said that the Love bracelet was born of a sleepless night contemplating a love affair gone wrong and his realization that “the only remnants he possessed of the romance were memories.” He distilled the urge to keep a loved one close into a slim 18-karat gold bangle.
BVLGARI and its coin jewelry, gemme nummarie, hit the jackpot when the line launched in the 1960s. The line has been perennially popular. BVLGARI coin jewelry features ancient Greek and Roman coins embedded in striking gold mounts, usually hung on thick link necklaces of varying lengths. In the 1970s, BVLGARI introduced the Tubogas line, most often made in yellow gold. The Tubogas watches are classics, and then there is the Serpenti, the house's outstanding snake-themed watches and bracelets.
A collection called Monete that incorporated the gold coins is one of several iconic BVLGARI lines that debuted in the 1970s and ’80s, catering to a new generation of empowered women. Just as designers like Halston and Yves Saint Laurent were popularizing fuss-free ready-to-wear fashion for women on the go, BVLGARI offered jewels to be lived in.
Since Van Cleef & Arpels opened its Place Vendôme doors in 1906, collection after collection of jewelry classics have enchanted the public. As predominantly expressed in a honeycomb of gold, there is the Ludo watch and accessories, circa the 1920s, and the golden Zip necklace, 1951, whose ingenious transformation of the traditional zipper was originally proposed by the Duchess of Windsor. Van Cleef's Alhambra, with its Moroccan motif, was introduced in 1968 and from the start its popularity pivoted on royalty and celebrity status. It remains one of VCA’s most popular and collected styles.
Mention must be made of Buccellati, whose name is synonymous with gold so finely spun that it suggests tapestry. The house’s many gold bracelets, typically embellished with a few or many diamonds, signified taste and distinction and are always in favor on the secondary market. Other important mid-20th-century houses known for their gold-themed jewelry include Hermès and Ilias Lalaounis.
Find a stunning collection of vintage and antique gold jewelry on 1stDibs.
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