These Circa 1850 earrings are handmade of 15 karat yellow gold. They are set with hand cut rose cut diamonds (nine diamonds in each earring); which results in 18 in the set. The diamonds are each about 3.4 mm each which is approximately 62 points of a carat. Each has a center stone of about 4 carats of hand cut natural Garnet.
Rose cut diamonds were introduced as early as the 1500's and were popular until the early 1900's. The shape of a rose cut diamond resembles the petals of a rose bud. The bottom is flat. The crown is domed shaped and the facets meet in a point in the center. The number of facets varies from 3, 6, 12, 18, to 24 facets.
Garnet Facts and Legends;
The history of Garnet dates back to the Bronze Age (more than 5,000 years ago), when it was a very popular gemstone. According to Christian and Jewish mythologies, when God's wrath clouded the earth with thunderous storms and endless rain during the Great Flood, a radiant red Garnet guided the way for Noah, ultimately leading his ark to salvation.
Garnets have been widely known for thousands of years. Even Noah, it is reported, used a lantern from Garnet in order to safely steer his Ark through the darkness of the night. Garnets are found in jeweler from ancient Egyptian, Greek and Roman eras. Many courageous discoverers and travelers wore Garnets for protection, as they were considered popular talismans and protective stones, because it was believed in those days that Garnets illuminate the night and prevent their wearer from any sort of evil. Today science explained to us that the proverbial luminosity of Garnet is caused by its high refraction of light.
These earrings are in excellent condition and the backs are original to the earrings. The gold work could have been made in Europe, and brought to America as a gift because of the types of fasteners of the back of the ear wires. Victorian gemstone earrings are very hard to find and these are truly beautiful and a wonderful investment.