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Gump's Jade Necklace, circa 1960s

About the Item

A Gump's jade necklace from the 1960s, still on its original string. Such a find! The multi-colored jadeite beads average 9mm and there are 59 of them all together, so the necklace measures 23". The muted tones are so perfectly modern today. Gump's was an iconic San Francisco store (the new Gump's has different ownership) founded by a legendary lover of fine jewelry, especially jade. Gump's jade jewelry has proven to be exceptionally collectible. This is partly because Gump's jewelry tends to stay in families; passed from one generation to the next. As a result, vintage Gump's jade jewelry rarely comes on the market. I am a second-generation collector of jade and my grandparents were true Gump's aficionados, so I know more about Gump's jade jewelry than is perhaps healthy. I love jade myself and this necklaces a good example of why. Jade is a dynamic gemstone. Meaning, it changes. You might think, how can it change? It's not like color-change Alexandrite, a star sapphire or a chrysoberyl cat's eye? But jade does indeed change; it changes with the light. The gemological construction of jadeite (and nephrite) is such that light is "held" by the stone and "released" in a fascinating and beautiful way. Even opaque jadeite -such as the jade beads you see here- can exhibit translucency. Meaning, the texture of the stone does not inhibit the light. Fine jade beads like these always look as if they have their own soft light source. I've tried to show you what I mean in the some of the photographs. The 14K yellow gold clasp features the classic Gump's double happiness character and is marked for metal purity and features the Gump's hallmark. The hallmark stamp is consistent with pieces dating from the 1960s. This is a gorgeous and rare Gump's jade necklace that you will cherish for a lifetime.
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