Ancient coin jewelry

Blackhawk

While on vacation last week, I happened upon a jewelry store that was a satellite (for the tourist trade) of a better store in a major metropolitan area. The store dealt in designer jewelry, as well as better antique estate pieces...they also had a line of better ancients (bronze, silver, and gold) mounted in precious metal pieces. They had a nice selection of better loose coins for the customers to pick from for custom jewelry pieces that were still in flips or 2X2s from dealers, some had COAs from better known numismatists dealing in ancients. The person behind the counter was happy to show me what they had, and indicated that better coins for this jewelry were harder to come by as of late because a jewelry company named Bulgari was aggresively buying for a line that they will be releasing. Anyone hear anything about this? It's sad that pieces of historic and numismatic interest are being turned into jewelry when there are good looking reproductions available in precious metals that would serve the same purpose.

Sapyx

I don't really mind people using ancient coins as jewellery - so long as the coins aren't actually damaged in the process.

I have a small copper Roman Provincial I bought unidentified, nice and cheap from a local dealer. When I eventually got around to taking it out of it's 2x2 and looking at it, I found out why it was so cheap - three-quarters of the edge had been filed down to nice smooth shiny copper! Here's a pic:

I asked around why anyone would do this and whether it might indicate it's a fake; consensus was that the coin was likely to be genuine enough, but the jewellers had been at it, making it nice and round for mounting into jewellery.

Hyperion

funny this should be posted... I was in AC a couple nights ago and in the poker room saw two males with necklaces which were ancients.... I had never seen it before, and to see 2 in one night was pretty odd... an upward trend? these guys were *not* numismatic types

CIVITAS

The reason they'll opt for genuine over reproductions is because they can part more money from the fool when selling. Take a $25.00 Probus bronze, make up a little brochure pitching the GENIUNE!!!!!! 1800 year old Roman Coin!!!!!!!!!, mark it up to $250.00 and then add in a gawdy 14K chain and bezel marked up 5-10 times over melt and you can make some serious money. Nobody wants to blow $700.00 on a reproduction. A repro doesn't impress anybody when you hang the big ugly thing over your hawaiian print shirt to show it off.

If you've ever been to Ponte Vecchio in Florence, you can see this business model at work. The Forum Gift shops at Caesar's Palace I think as well.

Weiss

Yeah, I mentioned them awhile back. Ancient Creations at Caesar's Palace Forum Shops.

Pretty and very well done stuff. They pick pieces that I think appeal to us as coin collectors, and not just overtly flashy materials. But they almost certainly clean the gold and silver pieces, and harshly clean the bronze and copper pieces, before putting them in jewelry.

http://forums.collectors.com/messageview.cfm?catid=6&threadid=300861&highlight_key=y&keyword1=jewelry

Ancient Creations

Some samples (some of these run $8,000 or more):

CIVITAS

Heh, the siege piece is interesting. I've never seen anything quite like that before.

I'll give their designer credit for having a knack for blending the style of the bezel well with the period of the coin itself (on some of the pieces). The bezel on the Solidus has a very Byzantine Mosaic/Ravenna feel to it. The blue and white color pattern and the style of the scallop/palmette on the siege piece also has a period feel. While both pieces are obviously modern, they definitely did some art historical research. I'd never wear the stuff, but I fully believe if there's a demand, then fill it.

farthing

The Byzantine and the siege piece are nice!










Too bad I don't own a Hawaiian shirt

Weiss

<< <i>

I'll give their designer credit for having a knack for blending the style of the bezel well with the period of the coin itself (on some of the pieces). >>

MrEureka

Barakat does pretty good work...

coinkat

<< <i>Text A repro doesn't impress anybody when you hang the big ugly thing over your hawaiian print shirt to show it off. >>



You are right... I can't cover up any portion of my Hawaiian shirt...