#6635 

We chatted about antique jewelry as an investment in posts 11-1,2 and 3. Here are a few last thoughts on the subject.

There is a difference between gold found in antique jewelry and gold bars. You can invest in gold, platinum, or silver, the metal, in and of 
itself. That's one thing. But antique jewelry is entirely another. 

We talked about 'scrap' or 'melt' price. This is the value of the metal when a jewel is melted down and sold for its constituent parts. Most mass-produced jewelry is not worth more than its scrap price. Most mass-produced jewelry is a losing investment. 

BUT: When you buy jewelry, and we are talking fine, antique and vintage pieces here, you are speaking about a work of art. It is a work of art that is very special in that it can be worn and enjoyed at all times. No 
one expects to pay scrap prices for a fabulous Georgian ring or necklace. You pay for the history, the art, the workmanship,  the design, the style, the beauty, the class and elegance. 

#64814 This brooch is a  WOW! Superb design and top quality workmanship, with moving parts.  The whole surpasses the sum of the constituent parts.

Good jewelry is increasingly difficult to find. Just talk to any antique jewelry dealer and that is the first topic for 
him/her to whinge about. There is less and less of it about and owners hang on to their good jewelry. A French dealer once 
explained to me, that contrary to my assumption, in bad economic times, French ladies do not sell their jewels. 

The price of good jewelry goes up, regardless of what the price of gold or anything else does. History has proved this, 
repeatedly. I don't think that the future is going to be any different. 
I spend a lot of time looking at old catalogues with their estimates and I only wish that I could be transported back to
those days to buy those items at those prices. In the first place, you simply can't find so much of it. Secondly, the prices
seem so very reasonable when I compare the prices of today. 

Antique jewelry has a history that cannot be easily assessed in monetary terms.  Is a ring that came out of a mass-producing factory as valuable as a 300-year-old ring, maybe a bit worn on the edges, with a love-note engraved inside the shank? Recently, a number of jewels from French royalty were stolen from the Louvre. The first thing most people wanted to know was 'how much were they worth?'. For people who know a little about the jewelry world, that was a little bit of a silly question. Yes, the gems could be dismantled and sold individually, but the sum of the parts does not nearly equal the value of the whole. The historic and social value of these pieces is incalculable. 

#4290 The work and design in these classic earrings surpasses the value of the materials used.      

I try to buy only the most interesting pieces. Another, unsaid condition is that the price must be reasonable for my
customers. Today, this has become a real challenge as any good piece commands astronomic prices. Good sources of jewelry are
disappearing very fast. There is more demand for special items than there are special items available. 

Ladies, hang on to your jewels and invest in more. 

You will be the one laughing all the way to the bank in the years to come and, meanwhile, what a pleasure your jewels 
will give you! 

#7566 Nobody in the entire world can enamel like this. Perfect condition after over 150 years.  

I hope that you never have to sell your jewels.  Once yours, they belong in your family and should go to your daughters, 
your granddaughters and then to their children. To be able to pass on a beautiful object with meaning, value and history 
is lovely and always appreciated. When we are gone, these little works of personal art and adornment form a physical link
between us and our descendants.

Just don't forget to tell them all about how these fascinating pieces came to be yours. They will appreciate the wonderful
 history of the antique jewelry as well as the value of what you are passing on to them.

#7274 Cannetille gold and amethyst earrings.