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Antiques! => Antique Questions Forum => Topic started by: KevinM on August 29, 2012, 04:18:29 PM
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I purchased this ring at the thrift store a few months ago and I'm trying to find out who the designer is. I've searched the internet but can't find the makers mark anywhere.
The ring feels and looks like gold but there is no mark and as the saying goes if there is no mark then it's probably not gold. The ring weighs about 8 grams and seems to be hand made.
There is a stamp in it with what looks like the initials "- KC", there are no other ID marks on the ring. The KC could be the initials of who once owned it and it was custom made for them. I don't know what the stones or inserts are made of.
Does any know who the designer of the ring is and perhaps a time period for when it may have been made. I doubt you could tell what it is made of from the pictures.
Thanks for any help!
Kevin
(http://img831.imageshack.us/img831/2589/rng1.jpg)
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The colour is correct for gold...no stamp...they could have worn off...you could do your own test....but you would need concentrated hydrochloric acid,....rubber gloves..and mask,a glass container small amount of acid teaspoon is enough,drop ring in...if it does,nt change colour its gold..i,ve done it with battery acid...which is sulphuric, or you can use ascetic which is vinegar..if its plated the vinegar will make it go black....do it outside...or the safest method..take them to a jewellers as for the stone its most likely black onyx...the price of gold is sky high,
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bigwull, thanks, sounds like a chemistry project. Usually if I can't pronounce the word or spell it I stay away from it! You definitely know old school...
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Looking at the ring again...if it was junk,or a dress ring...someone has went to an awful lot of trouble just to make it..and a ring of that unique design is definitely hand made...3 rings into one...sounds like it came from Lord of the Rings....3 Rings for the Elven Kings....or you could buy a testing kit at $24 post free..see link
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/GOLD-TEST-ACID-10K-14K-18K-SILVER-PLATINUM-STONE-KIT-/110873138720?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item19d08dd620
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Thanks bigwull, that's exactly the kit I have to get to test with. I see them use something similar on the antique shows all the time. I have a lot of things I need to test.
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Looking at the ring again...if it was junk,or a dress ring...someone has went to an awful lot of trouble just to make it..and a ring of that unique design is definitely hand made...3 rings into one...sounds like it came from Lord of the Rings....3 Rings for the Elven Kings....or you could buy a testing kit at $24 post free..see link
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/GOLD-TEST-ACID-10K-14K-18K-SILVER-PLATINUM-STONE-KIT-/110873138720?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item19d08dd620
I am a big fan of these test kits... Very handy.
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They sure are,and a lot more safer than juggling with hydrochloric and sulphuric...
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Some of the designers of American Indian jewelry stamped their works with two or three initials. Question is, if not gold then what? Most of that type of jewelry was silver. Try wearing it for a day, if it's brass, which I doubt, the greenish color on your finger will let you know.
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A real quick test would be rub the ring between your fingers, and then smell your fingers. Gold will have no smell, anything else...well?
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That,s not conclusive...a gold testing kit will be conclusive one way or the other...
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the back of the mountings sure looks good to me !! i would sure test it !!
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Kevin, just curious but can you tell if those stones are just set (and possibly glued) in place or are they held in place by the surrounding metal? i.e. the setting being 'finished' around/over the stones. Personally I would think that if this were a precious metal (therefore not a costume piece) that there would be a secure method of holding the stones in place. Just my two cents. ;)
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Another possible reason for the absence of an assayers mark,could be ,this ring looks to me like it was made specifically as a commission piece...if this is,nt gold then...then Moons definitely made of Green cheese,....my Nan told me that.....
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sapphire, it's hard to say for sure, the stones look encased in the metal but possibly glued too.
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Kevin,most rings are what i call glued and screwed...with rings that have small stones,they have claws that hold them in place..but where a stone is large and have a flat back, they will be glued in,the simple reason for this is,with this ring of yours, the recess for the stone looks to be the same size of the stone,but it will be slightly deeper than the stones thickness..thus giving the illusion that there is a rebate in which the stone sits...
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bigwull, thanks, your analysis for this ring I think would be correct. Now I'll just have to order that testing kit...
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most jewelers can test it for you !! might cost a few dollars !!
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This looks like an artisan piece... very popular in NYC... A friend of mine is a jewelry maker and she has done pieces like this in 14K and 18K. I am going to forward this picture to her because crazy enough I have seen this same ring in her collection. If this is her ring, btw she doesnt have gold markings on her rings either even though they are 100% gold, this ring probably cost about $1200. As for the stones, she just told me that she does glue her stones... everything is hand made and its hard to created claws or screw the stone. Do test the gold....
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Could it be a Kenneth Cole costume ring?
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Could it be a Kenneth Cole costume ring?
Who,s he??..i,ve heard of Nat.King.Cole...and old King Cole..who .was a merry old soul,...but never heard of a Kenneth :D
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Thanks everyone for the replies, looks like lovesshiny nailed the initials Kenneth Cole (- KC)! For some reason I kept thinking Calvin Klein but that was backwards. I Should have known Kenneth Cole I have some of his items and now one more, but it slipped my mind among other things.
http://www.jtote.com/product_info.php/kenneth-cole-new-york-worn-and-stone-stackable-look-ring-size-p-367115?osCsid=c2rthqct85u33tmiv3jepir6o1
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thanks,, lovesshiny,, for giving kevinm a mental nudge !! i know zip about most designers !!
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Well I never...it just goes to show...how clever these Chinese are....