Arthur King Colombian Emerald Crystal Diamond Gold Cocktail Ring Circa 1970
View Similar Items
Arthur King Colombian Emerald Crystal Diamond Gold Cocktail Ring Circa 1970
About the Item
- Creator:
- Ring Size:6 US, Not Resizable
- Metal:
- Stone:
- Stone Cut:
- Weight:51.2 g
- Style:
- Lab Report Available:GIA 6227363087
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1970s
- Condition:
- Seller Location:New York, NY
- Reference Number:Seller: MC34661stDibs: LU105214629692
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.
- Diamond and Yellow Gold Cocktail Ring Circa 1980Located in New York, NYA true showstopper and beautifully crafted, this is the cocktail ring to own. It is a diamond pave and 18 karat gold cut-out ring, c. 1980, a rich gold circle which has been opened u...Category
Vintage 1980s American Modern Cocktail Rings
MaterialsDiamond, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold, Gold
- Vivianna Torun for Georg Jensen Ironstone and Gold Cocktail Ring circa 1970By Vivianna Torun Bülow-HübeLocated in New York, NYAn ironstone and 18 karats gold ring, made by Vivianna Torun for Georg Jensen, Denmark. Signed Torun, 1424 Georg Jensen 750. The ring is a size 6.50. Due to the placement of hallma...Category
20th Century Danish Modernist Cocktail Rings
MaterialsGold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
- Arthur King South Sea Baroque Pearl Diamond Yellow Gold Brooch 1970sBy Arthur KingLocated in New York, NYA baroque south sea pearl, white and colored diamonds, and 18 karat gold brooch/pendant, by Arthur King, 1970s. Vintage jewelry. This brooch measures 2.56"H x 1.81"W and is signed Ki...Category
Vintage 1970s British Baroque Brooches
MaterialsDiamond, Brown Diamond, South Sea Pearl, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
- Charles Loloma Lapis Coral Turquoise Gold Shield Ring circa 1970By Charles LolomaLocated in New York, NYA lapis lazuli, coral, turquoise, wood and 14 karat gold shield ring, by Charles Loloma, c. 1970. Vintage jewelry. Signed Loloma, stamped 14k. Ring size 5. Similar examples are shown in the excellent book "Loloma: Beauty is His Name"by Martha Hopkins Streuver, 2005. This is a very finely made, elegant, Loloma shield ring using the highest-quality stones; a vintage jewel in excellent condition, and representative of the great artist jeweler Loloma's best work. The proportion of metal to stone is balanced and the color scheme is harmonious. The shield rings in gold have become hard to find. And the prices for the best jewelry by this transformative jeweler rise even further as witnessed by several recent auctions. This ring is a Loloma beauty, sits comfortably on the finger, and is an investment piece. Hopi artist Charles Loloma was one of the most influential 20th-century modernist jewelers. He was a Renaissance man of the times - a potter, a painter, a muralist, a poet, and a religious ceremonial leader. Living high on the Hopi mesas, he broke multiple imposed prohibitions on Native American jewelers and despite being excluded in his early years from important shows because his jewelry was not Ïndian enough" he simply continued working and changed the arc of his peoples' jewelry making and universal jewelry culture forever. (Loloma told his doubters, it was sufficient that he was an Indian for his jewelry to be considered Indian jewelry.) Through his modernist influence on jewelry, he transformed the design and lapidary techniques - height inlay, styles of shanks and bezel settings, and the use of new materials - lapis lazuli, wood, gold - in much of southwestern Native American jewelry for generations to come, He introduced this new form of beauty to the broader world. Loloma's pieces can be found in almost all important museums and private collections. Frank Lloyd Wright was a client. Mahnaz Collection carries the finest Loloma jewelry (and select artworks) as well as the jewel works of his only two acknowledged proteges - his niece Verma Nequetewa aka Sonwai, and Eveli Sabatie.Category
Vintage 1970s American Native American Cocktail Rings
MaterialsTurquoise, Lapis Lazuli, Coral, Yellow Gold, 14k Gold, Gold
- Tuk Fischer for Georg Jensen Amethyst and Yellow Gold Ring, Circa 1970Located in New York, NYA lively 18-karat gold ring with a beautiful cabochon amethyst designed by Tuk Fischer for Georg Jensen, Circa 1970. The ring is stamped Georg Jensen, Denm...Category
Vintage 1970s Danish Modernist Fashion Rings
MaterialsAmethyst, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold, Gold
- Unique Gerda Flöckinger Pearl Diamond and Yellow Gold Ring 1970sBy Gerda FlockingerLocated in New York, NYA vintage handmade and unique pearl, diamond and textured 18 karat yellow gold ring, by Gerda Flöckinger, United Kingdom, c. 1970. Signed GF. Ring is a size 6.25 and measures 0.70" x 0.38" x 0.40". The ring is work of art, poetic and radiant. The craftsmanship is superb with the conventional marriage of diamonds and pearls set aside for a newer more modern arrangement in 1970. Certainly a forever ring by a renowned maker. Even an engagement ring? A leader of the avant garde modern jewelry movement in London during the 1960s, Gerda Flockinger has long been regarded as the one of the greatest British modern artist jewelers. She was born in 1927 in Innsbruck, Austria and immigrated to England in 1938. The modern 1970s pearl and gold band...Category
Vintage 1970s British Artist Cocktail Rings
MaterialsDiamond, Pearl, Gold, 18k Gold
- Colombian Emerald and Diamond Ring, circa 1970Located in London, GBColombian emerald and diamond ring. Set to centre with an octagonal emerald-cut natural Colombian emerald with no/insignificant indications of clarity enhancement in an open back ru...Category
Vintage 1970s Signet Rings
MaterialsDiamond, Emerald, Yellow Gold
- Vintage Colombian Emerald Diamond Gold Cocktail RingLocated in Napoli, ItalyA beautiful emerald ring dated 1960, handmade in Italy in 18k white Gold showcasing a Natural Colombian emerald cut Emerald in the center weighing approx. 1.20 carat and surrounded b...Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Cocktail Rings
MaterialsDiamond, Emerald, 18k Gold
- 1970s Colombian Emerald, Diamond Gold RingLocated in Napoli, ItalyA very beautiful and impressive 18 kt Gold ring set with a natural Vivid Colombian Emerald 5,20 carats circa of great quality, surrounded by 6 Sparkling Round brilliant cut diamonds ...Category
Vintage 1970s European Retro Cluster Rings
MaterialsDiamond, Emerald, Gold
- Colombian Emerald Diamond Two-Tone Gold Cocktail RingLocated in Los Angeles, CAColombian emerald diamond and two tone gold cocktail ring by Kunio.* Love it because it caught your eye, and we are here to connect you with beautiful and affordable jewelry. It is ...Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Cocktail Rings
MaterialsEmerald, Diamond, Yellow Gold, White Gold, 18k Gold, Gold
- Colombian Emerald Diamond Two-Tone Gold Cocktail RingLocated in Los Angeles, CAColombian emerald diamond and two tone gold cocktail ring by Kunio.* Love it because it caught your eye, and we are here to connect you with beautiful and affordable jewelry. It is ...Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Cocktail Rings
MaterialsEmerald, Diamond, Yellow Gold, White Gold, 18k Gold, Gold
- Colombian Emerald Diamond Two-Tone Gold Cocktail RingLocated in Los Angeles, CAColombian emerald diamond and two tone gold cocktail ring by Kunio.* Love it because it caught your eye, and we are here to connect you with beautiful and affordable jewelry. It is ...Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Cocktail Rings
MaterialsDiamond, Emerald, Gold, 18k Gold, White Gold, Yellow Gold
Recently Viewed
View AllRead More
These Jean Schlumberger for Tiffany & Co. Earrings Are Just the Right Amount of Bold
Someone wanted to “modernize” the Jean Schlumberger for Tiffany & Co. masterworks, but Mahnaz Collection came to their rescue. Here, the dealer explains precisely why they’re such an extraordinary find.
Celebrate 70 Years of Visionary Female Jewelry Designers
Influential — and highly collectible — women jewelers from 1950 to the present day are the focus of a new exhibit at Mahnaz Collection’s NYC gallery.