Antique onyx and diamond earrings made in the 1870's

Onyx is a natural material from the same family as agate, chalcedony and chrysoprase, and occurs naturally as dense black with a white "streak" running through the stone. Often this white band is either cut away and not used, or the onyx is dyed a complete black, however when the white is used in a carving, it highlights the beauty of the stone resulting in some wonderful designs such as in these antique earrings dating from the 1870's.

Made in 18 carat yellow gold and set with a diamond on the top, it really is the onyx and the way it has been cut that is the star of the show. The oval piece of onyx is naturally layered displaying the black top that has a wonderful and elegant dome shape to it, as well as the black "base" of the stone, and then ingeniously, the carver not only left the white in the stone, but carved it into little "pearls" surrounding the top. The amount of painstaking time and care that would have been needed to carve the stones with all the tools and equipment from 150 years ago makes them even more incredibly and is a real testament to the quality of work from this wonderful bygone era.

At the top of each earring is a European cut diamond that both come together to total 0.06 carats and are each gypsy set which can be seen as the delightful star pattern around each diamond which was a popular diamond setting technique during the Victorian and Edwardian eras.

Measuring 13.8mm wide by 26mm to the top of the diamond set sections at the top, each earring is set on lovely long post fittings with butterfly catches.

As beautiful and elegant today as when they were made, there is no doubt that these earrings will always be loved, cherished and admired.

Stock# ES9207

Circa: 1870

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