A 10 CARAT EMERALD & DIAMOND BROOCH ON A NECKLACE OF 800 BLACK PEARLS

Austria, the brooch ca. 1850, the necklace added around 2005 by Anton Heldwein, umarked
With a certificate by the Austrian Gemological Laboratory, dating from November 13th, 2003, confirming the authenticity and dating of the brooch, and specifically the emerald being of Colombian origin

THE BROOCH holds a natural and untreated Colombian emerald with an intense, deep green color in its center, weighing approximately 5 carats, which is surrounded by an array of old-cut diamonds, the two largest weighing approximately 1 carat, the remaining 54 weighing a total of 3.7 carats, mounted in 0.545 antique gold with silver doubling, the clasp segments made of 0.326 antique gold.

THE EMERALD exhibits characteristics similar to those mined in the Chivor region of Colombia high up in the Andes. Emerald deposits were discovered there by conquistadors in 1537 and mined by the indigenous people, who were enslaved by the Spanish explorers. Given the connection between the Austrian and Spanish courts during the Habsburg Empire, it is likely that this stone made its way from the Colombian mines almost directly into the Austrian court, possibly as early as in the late 16th century, being mounted into this brooch in the 19th century. Until the discovery of the Chivor deposits, the only emerald mines known to the Western world were those in Egypt, which were largely exhausted by the 16th century. The remarkable availability of fine emeralds from mines under Spain's control afforded their extensive use in jewelry during the Renaissance and thereafter. Portraits of the Habsburg royal family and the nobility of the time show the sitters bejeweled, and often with gem-set appliques sewn directly onto their garments. The present emerald may well have been used for this purpose.

THE NECKLACE is made of six strands with a total of approximately 816 small black and iridescent south-sea black pearls and was created by prestigious Viennese jeweler Anton Heldwein in 2005 to complement the brooch and add an alternative option of wearing it. Therefore, the center piece can be disconnected from the necklace and is worn as a brooch only. The two clasps that connect the brooch with the necklace are made of 18k yellow gold.

THE HOUSE OF HELDWEIN, founded in 1902, is run by master goldsmith and gem expert Anton Heldwein as a family business in the fourth generation. After finishing his goldsmith training in Vienna and graduating as a gemologist in California, Anton Heldwein collected extensive experience in national and international studios before taking over the family business in Vienna's noble first district in 1991. Since then, Anton Heldwein operates one of the trade's very last family-owned jewelers himself, personally attending to daily business, creative decisions and, above all, his customers. Deeply rooted in the traditions of classical Viennese craftsmanship, Anton Heldwein maintains a modernist style in every aspect, most lately with the complete redesign of the flagship store in Vienna's most traditional and famous high street – the 'Graben'.

Shape: The brooch rectangular, the necklace in wave-shape with four segments
Weight: The brooch 18.9 grams; the necklace 27.5 grams
Dimensions: The brooch 44 x 27 x 15 mm. The necklace 35 x 2 cm.
Condition: Excellent condition, the stick pin of the brooch was lost but can be replaced by Anton Heldwein upon request
Insurance value: This necklace and brooch were recently appraised with an insurance replacement value of 24.000,- Euro; the original certificate will be handed to the winning bidder
Provenance: Austrian private collection, since before 1918 (by repute)
Literature recommendation: Colour of Paradise: Emeralds in the Age of the Gunpowder Empires, Kris Lane, Yale University Press (2010).

Auction result comparison: MASTERWORKS. Sotheby's, 1 FEBRUARY 2013, NEW YORK, lot 11. (compare this emerald with a Renaissance Colombian emerald set in a gold jewel recovered from the shipwrecked Spanish galleon Nuestra Señora de Atocha) ISLAMIC AND INDIAN ART, Bonham's, 5 April 2011, LONDON, lot 329. (compare this emerald with an important Mughal inscribed emerald mounted in an early Victorian gold bangle)