Antique Art Deco long pendant earrings. Platinum gold, diamonds, rubies. Made circa 1930. Exact origin unknown - probably English or American.
Measurements:
Weight is 7.40 grams. 1 1/2 inches long. Diamonds are European and Transitional cuts. Total diamond weight is approximately 1.30 carats. Square-shaped rubies weigh approximately 1.30 carats.
Description:
These earrings are rich and luxurious. They transform from linear, narrow frugality to fully inflated curved luxury. Not a grain of precious metal or gemstone is wasted or out of place. Each gem is cut, polished and placed to best effect. Design and execution, perfect.
The surmount is a three-pointed platinum crown, each point set with a small diamond — suggesting a star or fleur-de-lis — above an open arrowhead space inlaid with an elongated calibré-cut ruby tapering to a sharp point at the base.
A diamond set in a round collet is like a punctuation mark connecting the surmount to the long tapering blade that leads to a second identical collet-set diamond, marking the transition to the main body of the earrings. Each section is finely milgrain-bordered in platinum and articulated so that the earrings bend and twist, swing and sway, as the wearer moves.
The main body consists of a concave, tapering tubular bell form terminating in a round sphere, the two connected by a band of calibré-cut rubies.
Both the sphere and the tubular section above share the same decorative motif: a starburst of radiating open channels between pavé-diamond-set geometric sections. Close inspection reveals that the central front channel is Y-shaped, unlike the other radiating lines. The Y of the upper and lower sections aligns like a mirror image, creating a larger unified pattern that commands visual coherence between top and bottom.
The open channels are not merely decorative. They allow light to enter the hollow interior, giving the whole piece a luminosity that solid construction could never achieve. Art Deco makers understood this — the relationship between hollow construction, open settings, and light behavior was very deliberately exploited at the high end of the period. The negative space does as much visual work as the diamonds themselves; the contrast between set stones and open lines creates the starburst effect without filling every element. Sophisticated and economical at once.
The more you examine these earrings, the more intentional every element becomes. Whoever designed them knew exactly what they were doing.
Hollow tubular form and spheres ensure that earrings are relatively light and comfortable to wear despite their full form.
14k gold leverback clasps.
Marks and Metal:
No marks were found. Metal was electronically tested as platinum, with 14k gold lever backs.
Condition:
Good with negligible wear commensurate with age. Please see enlarged pictures and don't hesitate to ask questions which we will do our best to answer.
THE STORY:
There is a particular kind of Art Deco jewelry that announces itself quietly — no large stones, no ostentatious scale, no need to shout. Its authority comes entirely from proportion, precision, and the intelligence of its design. These earrings belong to that category.
At the finest workshops in London and New York, pieces like these represented the apex of the jeweler's discipline — every element resolved, every transition considered, every surface doing exactly what it was asked to do and nothing more. The choices made here — ruby and diamond palette, calibré cutting, milgrain edging, hollow construction — are not conventions followed mindlessly. They are the decisions of someone who understood the material completely.
What sets these earrings apart is the level of intention behind them. And nowhere is that more quietly expressed than in a detail so small that most eyes will pass over it entirely.
The Y's position is significant. Dead center on the front face, it sits exactly where the eye naturally falls. It won't register consciously as a Y to most viewers, but it creates a visual anchor — a slight irregularity in the starburst that makes the eye pause without knowing why. That's sophisticated design behavior. The piece is more interesting to look at than a pure geometric starburst would be, and most people couldn't explain why.
It is possible that the Y holds greater significance — to the maker or the original owner. That is speculation, and we will never know.
We also offer an Art Deco platinum ring (item 7697) sharing virtually identical design vocabulary, ruby color, and workmanship. While we cannot confirm they were made as a set, the similarities are compelling.
