Buying jewellery at auction requires a certain stamina and flexibility as you may not always end up with what you first selected as your favourite piece.
Nevertheless, your final purchase may well become more precious to you over time following the adventure of buying it at auction.
Damian Matthews, who runs monthly jewellery auctions, advises prospective buyers to go to several auctions and to speak to auctioneers before buying anything.
“It’s about informing and educating yourself. We’re very careful about what we take in but wherever there is wealth, there is fraud,” says Matthews. He suggests you ask to see the condition report for any piece of jewellery before bidding. “We test all our diamonds before we sell them. It’s about protecting our reputation as auctioneers,” he say.
RM Block
At Matthews next auction on Tuesday, April 14th, there is a wide range of rings for sale, some of which would make perfect engagement rings suiting various budgets and personal styles.
Take the sapphire and diamond ring (€350-€550) or the five-stone diamond ring (€1,200-€1,800), for example. A five-stone diamond ring mounted in 18-carat yellow gold (€4,000-€7,000) or the yellow and orange sapphire 12-stone with diamond inset in 18K yellow gold (€800-€1,200) are other interesting options within the 740 lots on offer.
The auction also has a good selection of chains and pendants, including a 9-carat yellow gold rope chain (€1,500-€2,500) or an Australian opal drop pendant in 9-carat yellow gold (€300-€500). The seven-stone opal broach mounted in 9-carat yellow gold (€300-€500) is another attractive piece as is the nine-stone pearl and diamond cluster set pendant mounted in 9-carat gold and on a 9-carat yellow and white gold double chain (€600-€900).
Those interested in buying jewellery at Matthews forthcoming auction can view the lots in the auction rooms on Market Street in Kells, Co Meath today, tomorrow and Monday (April 11th-13th) from noon to 5pm.
Viewing of items in advance is not only important to check hallmarks and condition reports but also to consider personal preferences for yellow or white gold. For example, some experts say that diamonds set in yellow gold tend to stand out more than diamonds set in white gold. Others prefer white gold for its robust qualities.
Yellow gold is the naturally occurring soft precious metal. In contrast, white gold is made from yellow gold with white precious metal alloys such as palladium and silver added to give it strength. As well as making it more rigid, these alloys bring a lighter colour to the gold. White gold is also usually coated in rhodium to give it a luminous sheen.
Pure gold is 24 carat while 18 carat is 75 per cent gold and 8 carat is 37.5 per cent gold.
White and yellow gold are usually the same price per carat, but white gold can be more expensive due to the addition of alloys.
Matthews also points to an individual collection of 17 gold sovereigns as interesting lots in the auction.
With individual estimates of €600-€900, the sovereigns dated from 1902-1927 have images of Britain’s king Edward VII, while one with queen Elizabeth II is dated 1964. There are also some Irish silver free-state florin coins (€30-€50). Dublin-based fans of Matthews auctions will be pleased to hear that he is relocating to 3 Nassau Street, Dublin 2, from May, from where he will run his future monthly jewellery and gold/silver auctions.
Educational events
As vintage and antique jewellery continues to draw interest, the foray into educational events by Courtville Antique and Vintage Jewellery in Powerscourt Townhouse centre in Dublin is a welcome development. Anyone keen to know more about early Victorian jewellery should consider getting one of the remaining spots at their interactive sessions on this era of jewellery on Friday and Saturday, April 17th and 18th. These free courses, which will continue during the summer months, in The Drawing Room at Powerscourt Townhouse Centre, 59 South William Street, Dublin 2, offer great insight into the art and social history of jewellery and include hands-on examination of authentic jewellery pieces from the Courtville collection.
“In the sessions, we’ll look at the elegance, romance and hidden symbolism of early Victorian jewellery and later sessions will look at mid and late Victorian jewellery,” says Matthew Weldon, owner of Courtville Antique and Vintage Jewellers. Just back from hosting a stand at the Original Miami Beach Antique Show in the United States, Weldon also shares his wealth of knowledge on jewellery in his Gem Pursuits podcast. Courtville plans to set up more formal education modules on the history of jewellery in 2027.
matthewsauctionrooms.com, courtville.ie
What did it sell for?
Evening, Killarney, Paul Henry
- Estimate: £40,000 –£60,000
- Hammer price: £96,000 (€110,520)
- Auction house: Sotheby’s
Early Morning, Daniel O’Neill
- Estimate: £7,000-£10,000
- Hammer price: £28,160
- Auction house: Sotheby’s
Zither hand harp
- Estimate: €150-€250
- Hammer price: €130
- Auction house: Sheppards
French Ormolu clock
- Estimate: €3,500-€5,500
- Hammer price: €2,800
- Auction house: Sheppards
