Taylor Swift’s engagement ring designer Kindred Lubeck of Artifex is heading to the auction block.
The jeweler has worked with Sotheby’s world-renowned auction house and jewel dealer Anup Jogani to develop three special rings, which will be auctioned as part of the Gem Drop on November 13th (although the auction will officially open for bidding on November 10th).
The collection of rings includes one 4.05-carat Old Mine diamond, one 8.66-carat Cognac Old Mine diamond, and one 5.48-carat brilliant blue sapphire, each set in gold.
Jogani sourced the three stones, and Lubeck designed and set the ring. “We’re really letting the stone speak for itself,” the designer told Sotheby’s, adding, for example, “if the stone has a geometric cut, you’ll see more of a geometric carving.”
With Swift’s ring, Lübeck helped fuel the growing popularity and knowledge surrounding antique stones.
The ring she designed for the 14-time Grammy Award winner features a hand-carved 18K gold shank set with an elongated old mine cut diamond set in the bezel. The size of the stone is estimated to be 8 to 10 carats.
What makes Lubeck designs so unique is the hand-carved nature of Swift’s rings. “My role in the jewelry world is to keep handicrafts alive,” Lubeck told Sotheby’s.
On the Today Show last month, the jeweler added, “It’s very Zen-like. Starting to carve is a very meditative experience for me.”
Antique stones are hand-cut to create maximum brilliance through cutlets and facets that are larger than those found in most machine-cut diamonds today. Due to the nature of the artisan’s work, precision is reduced and each stone is unique.
While modern brilliant cuts may have given way to more obvious brilliance, old mine and old European diamonds were cut to produce a soft sparkle, especially noticeable under the candlelight of the time.
“You can see it’s got such a big, wide surface,” the designer explained to Today, adding, “The modern cut, on the other hand, is more like a disco ball. It’s very sparkly, but the older cut is just a little bit more…the flash is broader. It creates this romantic delicacy.”
Nowadays, diamonds are accurately graded based on color, cut, and clarity, so inclusions in antique stones have less impact on the total value. “Inclusions are considered to be a sign of a stone’s individuality, rather than its uniform perfection,” the auction house reports.
Kathleen Smith Craig, associate specialist and head of fine jewelry sales at Sotheby’s, added: “People are looking for something a little different and special rather than the typical modern cuts that are all too similar.”
Sotheby’s estimates that all three rings will cost between $210,000 and $300,000, but auction prices often realize well above expectations. Wait for the final hammer or bid for yourself when these unique rings hit the auction block next week.
