Seaman Schepps More Rings
A scrappy, self-made artist who transformed turbo shells into decadent earrings and crystal chessmen into bold bracelets, Seaman Schepps (1881–1972) tirelessly worked his way up from the tenements of New York’s Lower East Side to become “America’s Court Jeweler.”
Born to immigrant parents who named him for the Seamen’s Bank for Savings that his mother could see from the hospital — or so the legend goes — Schepps dropped out of school at the age of 14 and never had any formal jewelry training. He later moved to California, where he opened his first jewelry shop in 1904. In 1921, he returned to New York to build on the success he’d begun to enjoy as a jeweler on the West Coast, but it wasn’t long before his Manhattan house, which counted Broadway stars and theater patrons among its clientele, was hit hard by the stock market crash of 1929. Schepps used this disruption to rethink his approach to jewelry, debuting a new store in 1934 on Madison Avenue, where he would make his mark in playful custom adornments.
While many high-end jewelers of his era focused on the purest and most valuable gemstones, Schepps chose his materials for their color and shape, elevating flawed stones others disregarded in collage-like formations involving unconventional materials such as fine wood, coral, seashells and flea-market finds. Passersby of his New York City shop could find a frog-shaped brooch carved from rosewood, a vintage snuff bottle broken into links for a bracelet and loose-drilled pearls plugged with diamonds. Schepps’s whimsical pieces found fans in fashion icons who appreciated his unique statements, including Doris Duke, Andy Warhol and the Duchess of Windsor.
Following Schepps’s death in 1972, his daughter, jewelry designer Patricia S. Vaill, ran the jewelry house for two decades before it was taken over by Jay Bauer and Anthony Hopenhajm of Trianon jewelry. Following the closure of the company’s Park Avenue store in November 2020, sales for Seaman Schepps is now based in its boutique location out of Palm Beach, Florida, where the legendary brand carries forth its founder’s spirited designs.
On 1stDibs, find a distinctive collection of vintage Seaman Schepps jewelry, including brooches, bracelets and other accessories.
Late 20th Century American Modern Seaman Schepps More Rings
18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Contemporary Seaman Schepps More Rings
Citrine, Peridot, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Seaman Schepps More Rings
Amethyst, Peridot, Gold, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
1950s Italian Retro Vintage Seaman Schepps More Rings
Topaz, Peridot, Garnet, Diamond, Amethyst, Silver, Rose Gold, 9k Gold
1950s Retro Vintage Seaman Schepps More Rings
Topaz, Yellow Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, Ruby, Peridot, Diamond, Amethyst,...
2010s Turkish Modern Seaman Schepps More Rings
Diamond, Opal, Peridot, 14k Gold
Late 20th Century American Seaman Schepps More Rings
Amethyst, Cultured Pearl, 14k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Swiss Contemporary Seaman Schepps More Rings
Diamond, Ruby, Gold, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Artisan Seaman Schepps More Rings
Peridot, Tanzanite, Sterling Silver
2010s Turkish Modern Seaman Schepps More Rings
Amethyst, Diamond, Peridot, 14k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Brazilian Art Nouveau Seaman Schepps More Rings
Amethyst, Peridot, Topaz, Blue Topaz, Silver, Sterling Silver
21st Century and Contemporary Seaman Schepps More Rings
Amethyst, Opal, Peridot, Gold
1960s American Vintage Seaman Schepps More Rings
Diamond, Emerald, Platinum
Late 20th Century American Modernist Seaman Schepps More Rings
Amethyst, 18k Gold, Gold
1980s American Vintage Seaman Schepps More Rings
Onyx, 18k Gold
1950s American Retro Vintage Seaman Schepps More Rings
Diamond, Emerald, Ruby, Sapphire, 14k Gold