Snake Ring with Opal English circa 1876 Unisex

$5,440

$6,80020% Off

About the Item

It was the flash of the opal I saw first. I was leaving the store, having paid for my new (very old) three rings when a flash of red, then yellow caught my eye. When she removed the ring from the case I said, I'll take that, too. The ring took me, is the truth. This is a stand-out among snake rings. Enormously popular in the Victorian era because Prince Albert presented his bride, Queen Victoria, with a snake ring as a wedding ring. The coiled serpent represented love and snake rings typically have gemstones set atop their heads or featured as eyes. This particular snake ring features a stunning and in my opinion quite perfect natural Australian opal that measures approximately 7mm x 5.5mm and displays the full spectrum of colors, but has a deep, reddish-orange glow at all times. Red is the rarest color in an opal. And this is an exceedingly fine ring with an opal that shows no crack or crazing after nearly a century-and-a-half. The gold is the color of European butter and smoother than the smoothest thing you have ever touched. The ring slides onto the finger without the merest trace of roughness or "metal." It is among the most comfortable rings I have ever worn. And it is ceaselessly impressive. The opal needs but the slightest light to perform its unique display of colors and shapes. This is why I love opals: diamonds have one trick; they sparkle. Opals are never the same gemstone twice. The ring bears hallmarks from the Birmingham assay office testifying to the 18K gold content and a date letter that tells is the ring was made in 1876. There is also a maker's mark which corresponds to a jeweler named Henry Bourne, who registered his mark in 1871. The ring is currently a size 9 and could be resized by your local jeweler