TSARINA Earrings Vintage Faceted Honey Amber Russian Medieval Style 24K GV

This style was very popular in Medieval and Renaissance jewelry, a cone of precious metal with a gemstone accent. I use it in my Catherine Parr Tudor Renaissance style earrings. I've used sterling vermeil cones here, with a spiral pattern. The gemstones, of course, are Baltic amber: 12mm. rondelles of gorgeous vintage hand-faceted Baltic honey amber (more about this below), and modern 5mm. rounds of modern smooth honey amber. Judging from the minute irregularities in the rondelles faceting, I would assess these as hand-faceted, usual for the time they were made.

They hang from filigree pattern vermeil post wires, reminiscent of the Oriental filigree that so influenced Medieval Russian art and jewelry. They measure a total of 1.75" long.

All metals are 24kt. sterling vermeil, except the jewelry pins which are 14kt. gold-filled, and all amber genuine and unprocessed.

The faceted honey amber rondelles are approximately 110 to 120 years old, but because I do not have an authenticity certificate, I am being conservative and calling them vintage rather than antique. Here is how you can tell genuine antique and vintage amber: it will have tiny abrasion marks at the bead holes from the thread or cable, as amber is one of the softest of all natural gemstones (a 2 out of 10 on the Mohs mineral scale of hardness, used in the gem trade). It will also have a weblike tracery of tiny fracture lines throughout the amber, although the beads will remain intact. These 2 markers always distinguish genuine antique amber from Victorian and Edwardian-era synthetic resin amber imitations such as Bakelite (which now has value in its own right). The close-up scans show this web of tiny lines, which the modern rounds do not have. Any faceted amber (and Bakelite was usually manufactured as cherry amber) beads from the Victorian period, that do not show the weblike network of fine lines inside the beads and tiny abrasions at the bead holes, are almost certainly synthetic Bakelite amber, not natural resin amber.

These earrings look absolutely spectacular with any outfit. Feel like a Medieval Russian Tsarina in these gorgeous earrings!

These would retail in a good historical reproduction jewelry catalog for about $150.

The last painting is 'Tsar Alexis Of Russia Chooses His Bride' by Grigori Smedov. It gives a good idea of the beauty and intricacy of Medieval Russian women's styles.

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Item ID: n/a1330