Sapphire Jewelry
1990s Unknown Retro Sapphire Jewelry
Blue Sapphire, Sapphire, Gold, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
1960s Unknown Retro Vintage Sapphire Jewelry
Blue Sapphire, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
1940s Retro Vintage Sapphire Jewelry
Sapphire, Blue Sapphire, White Diamond, Diamond, White Gold, 18k Gold, Gold
1980s Retro Vintage Sapphire Jewelry
Diamond, Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold, White Gold
1950s Unknown Retro Vintage Sapphire Jewelry
Blue Sapphire, Sapphire, Diamond, Platinum
1960s Unknown Retro Vintage Sapphire Jewelry
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold, Gold
1940s French Retro Vintage Sapphire Jewelry
Sapphire, Tiger's Eye, Diamond, 18k Gold
1970s Unknown Retro Vintage Sapphire Jewelry
Diamond, Sapphire, 14k Gold
Late 20th Century Retro Sapphire Jewelry
Sapphire, Green Sapphire, Gold, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
1980s American Retro Vintage Sapphire Jewelry
Pink Sapphire, 18k Gold
1980s European Retro Vintage Sapphire Jewelry
Diamond, Sapphire, 14k Gold
2010s Thai Georgian Sapphire Jewelry
Yellow Sapphire, Pink Sapphire, Emerald, Diamond, 18k Gold
20th Century Retro Sapphire Jewelry
Diamond, Emerald, Ruby, Blue Sapphire, Gold
1980s European Retro Vintage Sapphire Jewelry
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold
1990s European Retro Sapphire Jewelry
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold
1920s American Retro Vintage Sapphire Jewelry
Diamond, Blue Sapphire, Sapphire, Yellow Gold, Rose Gold, 14k Gold, Gold
20th Century Indian Retro Sapphire Jewelry
White Diamond, Emerald, Ruby, Sapphire, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
1940s Swiss Retro Vintage Sapphire Jewelry
Diamond, Sapphire, Gold, Platinum
1950s Swiss Retro Vintage Sapphire Jewelry
Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold, White Gold, Yellow Gold
1950s Unknown Retro Vintage Sapphire Jewelry
Diamond, Emerald, Sapphire, Gold, 14k Gold
20th Century Unknown Retro Sapphire Jewelry
Blue Sapphire, Sapphire, White Diamond, Diamond, White Gold, 14k Gold
1930s French Retro Vintage Sapphire Jewelry
Diamond, Pink Sapphire, White Gold
1980s Unknown Retro Vintage Sapphire Jewelry
Diamond, Sapphire, Gold, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Retro Sapphire Jewelry
Diamond, Emerald, Sapphire, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Retro Sapphire Jewelry
Sapphire, White Gold
1940s American Retro Vintage Sapphire Jewelry
Emerald, Ruby, Blue Sapphire
1950s American Retro Vintage Sapphire Jewelry
Ruby, Sapphire, 14k Gold
20th Century Indian Retro Sapphire Jewelry
White Diamond, Blue Sapphire, 18k Gold, White Gold
1980s European Retro Vintage Sapphire Jewelry
Diamond, Sapphire, 14k Gold
Vintage and Antique Sapphire Rings, Sapphire Necklaces and Other Sapphire Jewelry for Sale on 1stDibs
On 1stDibs, shop the bright blue gems that star in sapphire rings, sapphire necklaces and other vintage and antique sapphire jewelry.
Sapphires — the stone of choice for Napoleon, Princess Diana and Elizabeth Taylor — have been a favorite of aristocrats and the well-to-do since the time of the Ancient Greeks.
Picture a sapphire. If the stone you conjure is a deep cornflower blue, you’re seeing only part of the picture. Although blue Kashmirs are considered the most valuable, sapphires come in every color except red. No matter the hue, this very special gem is rich in history and beloved by royals (FYI, Princess Diana and Kate Middleton share an 11-carat sapphire engagement ring), so September babies are in very noble company.
America’s version of royalty — old money and celebrities — have also shown a predilection for the blue stones. In 1940, John D. Rockefeller Jr. had Cartier mount a 62-carat sapphire he had bought from an Indian maharajah in a brooch for his first wife, Abby Aldrich Rockefeller; in 2001, the piece sold for a then-record of $3,031,000 at Christie’s New York.
The grand dame of jewelry, Elizabeth Taylor had a passion for the gems that her lovers were happy to indulge. Second husband Michael Wilding gave her an engagement ring set with a cabochon sapphire, while Richard Burton famously presented her with a BVLGARI sautoir set with diamonds and sapphires, including at its center a cabochon Burmese weighing 52.72 carats. One of the star lots in the sale of Taylor’s jewels at the Christie’s New York in 2011, it sold for $5,906,500.
You don’t have to have blue blood or a bulging bank account, however, to get an eyeful of this much-coveted gem. A number of outstanding examples reside in public collections.
The Smithsonian Museum of Natural History owns the 423-carat Logan sapphire, a gift from the Guggenheim family, and the Hall sapphire and diamond necklace, designed by Harry Winston and featuring 36 fine, well-matched cushion-cut Sri Lankan sapphires weighing a combined 195 carats. Also in the collection is the Bismarck sapphire necklace, designed by Cartier and sporting a central sapphire weighing 98.6 carats, which Mona Von Bismarck donated to the museum.
Sapphires are composed of corundum. Their color derives from trace elements, such as iron, titanium, chromium, copper or magnesium. When the trace element produces a ruby hue, the stone is called, what else, a ruby. (which is, as mentioned above, why sapphires cannot be red by definition).
The allure of large gemstones endures throughout the periods characterized as vintage, and sapphire features frequently in vintage engagement rings. (On 1stDibs, a range of buying guides can be found for those in the market for antique engagement rings, vintage engagement rings or Art Deco engagement rings.)
Find an exquisite collection of vintage and antique sapphire jewelry on 1stDibs.