Can this vintage tahitian ring be saved?

Adeline Leigh

Adeline Leigh

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Oct 1, 2011
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I fell for this ring on ebay and bought it based on 2 miserable blurred photos. In other words, I'm an idiot that took a really big risk as I could barely make out the black shiny blob of a pearl in the pics.

The seller (100% feedback with canary diamonds and 3ct emeralds in her inventory) claims to be a former antique shop owner and had described it as a tahitian pearl and diamond ring with Florentine finished gold leaves and millgrain work. Blue and white diamonds encircle the 8.5mm tahitian pearl and the most intriguing is the adjustable shank.

Of course when it arrived I loved everything about the ring BUT the tahitian pearl! It's usually the other way around, isn't it. My questions to the experts (and amateurs) on PG include:
- anyone seen adjustable shanks on rings like this before?
- can anyone date this piece by its design? Origin?
- can the tahitian pearl be saved (though in the depths of my heart I seriously doubt it)
- what could have caused such damage (strange freckles, dappled spots - almost polka, scratches) to the tahitian?
 

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What an unusual shank on the ring. Never seen anything like it.
The ring is unusual and I like it a lot - good risk taking there.
Is the ring for you? If so, how do you feel about the pearl. Are the marks from wear or inherent flaws? It is totally your call. Seems odd to go to so much trouble over a complex shank, lots of gold, diamonds and so on then blow it on a duff 8.5mm pearl which is, cost wise, one of the least of the components.
 
I wholly, agree, Wendy. It seems too intricately made for someone to consider such a sub-standard pearl even if it a tahitian. The parts of the pearl protected by the leaves and gold is a lovely metallic with bright pinks and greens. And in this state, to answer your question, I hate it. It makes me sad that such a ring could have been so badly ill-treated. The spots on the pearl are really queer as well as if some solvent came into contact with it and the long scratch goes way in too deep. I've emailed the seller but it's silence for now as her auctions have all ended. I'm trying to place the period. Does anyone want to take a guess?
 
Interesting ring, Adeline. I've seen similar components to the hinged section in the shank available to retrofit a ring so that the owner could get it over their knuckles and then adjust it tight enough so the ring doesn't roll to the side. Forcing a ring over arthritic knuckles is a painful process. Perhaps this ring was a favorite and worn lots, causing the damage to the pearl?
This might have been a custom piece, with the hinge created as part of the original.
 
Patty, brilliant. A solution for all those forced to stop wearing rings due to arthritis swolle finger joints. I wonder from where these shanks can be obtained. I can't imagine some goldsmith making something like that as a one-off (phew!)
I have a suspicious that there is one secret findings house, all the others buy only some of its stock and some of the stuff we want never appears!
 
Surprise! This, or similar to Adeline's, available from Stuller. http://www.stuller.com/products/sh38/?groupId=52177 They have a few simpler styles also. Probably used mostly on wedding rings, but at a few hundred bucks, plus jewelers labor not completely unaffordable.

Personally, I think figuring out what "name" to search for when looking for a certain item is the tricky part.
 
If large scale farming and marketing of Tahitian pearls started after 1975. and the pearl is original to the ring, then it's less than 40 years old. I actually thought it was somewhat older, based on the design and goldwork.

Pattye is spot on, the shank is for arthritic fingers. You don't see them all that often. I don't know if they're not popular, too expensive or people just hang on to them for some other reason.

pearlescence, here are some sources: ForeverFit, Tripp's Manufacturing. Here's a different style. Useful search terms are "adjustable shank" or "arthritis shank."
 
We used to sell those custom shanks where I used to work. They were great for women with enlarged knucles,or top heavy rings. I think they are called fingerfit.
 
I really like the ring. Used rings often have damaged pearls, but the actual ring looks great. You probably won't find a maker's mark because it would be on the original shank and that might help date it. It looks like a cast piece with good workmanship. I'm not sure how much you know about stones, but are you sure that they are diamonds and not blue zircons? I say this because the stones are large, lighter blue, and they weren't selling a lot of treated blue diamonds when this ring was made - probably early eighties.

If the ring were mine, I'd change the pearl and enjoy the heck out of it. Actually, think of a big wrinkly pink or lavender kasumi!!! In this case, the value is all in the ring and it's fabulous. I'm kind of jealous. :)
 
Adeline - it's a beautiful setting. Pity that the pearl is in such bad shape. I love your collection of pearl rings. I'd love to wear such beautiful ring-bling, but I'm afraid that I am far too rough on my hands to be able to get away with a gem as delicate as a pearl on it! I wonder if the adjustable shank is comfortable to wear? or if the extra mechanism would be bulky on the knuckles?
 
Hello everyone, thanks so much for helping to unsolve my mystery of this ring. Well not much mystery anyway. Your responses have all helped me to understand my new treasure.

Pattye, Karin and LFS for the adjustable shanks urls and info; I am so glad the previous owner loved this ring and had to get one of these nifty contraptions to accommodate the arthritis. Bacca for helping date the now-condemned pearl with your titbit of info about tahitian pearl farming and Blaire, Wendy and Lulu for weighing in on your comments on the ring. It certainly has helped me appreciate it better as three days ago I was a tad sore that the tahitian pearl was in such bad shape.

You all are right as there is no maker's mark or stamp on it as the older part of the ring and its millgrain stops abruptly just where the adjustable shank starts. As for blue zircons, why Blaire you could be quite right again. Because even though the ring came with four-figure appraisal dated 2005 for blue diamonds, I might take your advice and bring it for my own little check.

Thanks a lot, everyone.
 
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i dont really think the ring is old the blue diamonds look like they where colored by irradiation for the tone they have and this is not an old technique

also the system is not a old one of you ask me .....if any of you is ever going to do this you should try the http://superfitrings.com/ system this one is world wide the best one i have worked with so far )

the pearl indeed is been beat in his live i would put a new one on there if i was you a nice 8,5 peacock with blue tone would go nice with this ring

if the seller also sells diamonds and you did not pay thousand for it then the diamonds are not natural blue these diamonds are available in larger scale for something like 10 years so i assume its not much older than that

funny ring !
 
Thanks Daniel for all that information. It helps me square my 'vintage' (revised definition of 10 years old?) ring better now.

For what I paid (is it rude to say shy under a thousand?), I'm happy with irradiated 'blue diamonds' (?) or for that matter blue zircons. The appraisal that came with the ring (again, is it rude to quote $3900) dated 2005 might have been inflated but acquiring a treasured 'old' piece and giving it new life vis-a-vis a new pearl delights me. I most definitely will go on yet another search for yet another pearl and if there is anything this thread is good for, it's for all the resources you helpful people have suggested about adjustable shanks! I'm saving the urls for future use when that day that rings no longer fit over knuckles arrive!

Heartfelt thank you.
 
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Those shanks are a very good idea indeed.

My Granny never took her wedding ring off - for the last 10 years or so of her life, she couldn't get it off, and couldn't easily wear other rings, either.
 
I'm still wild about the ring! :cool:

The majority of blue diamonds are treated from smaller, lesser grade diamonds and are darker. They need to make them darker to overcome the yellow tint. That's why you see a lot of teal color diamonds when they say they are blue. Your blue diamonds have a good irradiation job that started with high quality diamonds, and I still think they're big. That would raise the cost of the ring. And the cost of metal these days makes it a better deal still. I would think an appraiser would get it right, but any jewelry store will have a diamond tester.
 
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