Mexican brutalist silver Ring with amethyst "mask"
Sized for a man (yet resizable by a jeweler to fit a woman as well) this vintage Mexican silver and carved amethyst "mask" ring attracted me with its unusual brutalist setting. I don't think I have ever encountered a "mask" in a brutalist ring and I was quite thrilled with the discovery despite the fact that the stone was showing its age and the shank was burdened with a huge blob of solder thanks to somebody's clumsy attempt at resizing. It just took some love and a trip to the jeweler's - and here it is now, the silver work restored to its initial beauty and the "mask" having regained some of its lost youthfulness. All told, I have no doubt it was more than worth the effort...
Size / Weight: sz 11 US (resizable by your jeweler); face is 7/8" N-S by approx. 3/4" E-W; approx. 5/8" rise; 15.8 grams
Hallmarks / Date: "MEXICO" and "925"; based on style, I will date in the 1960s-70s despite the missing Eagle mark which might have been destroyed by the additional solder once used to resize the ring (please, read description above)
Condition: very good vintage, quite unusual in its design, with a beautifully colored stone and a nicely carved mask, with some light abrasions that are not readily visible to the naked eye and thus not offensive at all when you have the ring on (you see them here in extreme magnification thanks to the macro lens)
Inv# 15715
Sized for a man (yet resizable by a jeweler to fit a woman as well) this vintage Mexican silver and carved amethyst "mask" ring attracted me with its unusual brutalist setting. I don't think I have ever encountered a "mask" in a brutalist ring and I was quite thrilled with the discovery despite the fact that the stone was showing its age and the shank was burdened with a huge blob of solder thanks to somebody's clumsy attempt at resizing. It just took some love and a trip to the jeweler's - and here it is now, the silver work restored to its initial beauty and the "mask" having regained some of its lost youthfulness. All told, I have no doubt it was more than worth the effort...
Size / Weight: sz 11 US (resizable by your jeweler); face is 7/8" N-S by approx. 3/4" E-W; approx. 5/8" rise; 15.8 grams
Hallmarks / Date: "MEXICO" and "925"; based on style, I will date in the 1960s-70s despite the missing Eagle mark which might have been destroyed by the additional solder once used to resize the ring (please, read description above)
Condition: very good vintage, quite unusual in its design, with a beautifully colored stone and a nicely carved mask, with some light abrasions that are not readily visible to the naked eye and thus not offensive at all when you have the ring on (you see them here in extreme magnification thanks to the macro lens)
Inv# 15715
Sized for a man (yet resizable by a jeweler to fit a woman as well) this vintage Mexican silver and carved amethyst "mask" ring attracted me with its unusual brutalist setting. I don't think I have ever encountered a "mask" in a brutalist ring and I was quite thrilled with the discovery despite the fact that the stone was showing its age and the shank was burdened with a huge blob of solder thanks to somebody's clumsy attempt at resizing. It just took some love and a trip to the jeweler's - and here it is now, the silver work restored to its initial beauty and the "mask" having regained some of its lost youthfulness. All told, I have no doubt it was more than worth the effort...
Size / Weight: sz 11 US (resizable by your jeweler); face is 7/8" N-S by approx. 3/4" E-W; approx. 5/8" rise; 15.8 grams
Hallmarks / Date: "MEXICO" and "925"; based on style, I will date in the 1960s-70s despite the missing Eagle mark which might have been destroyed by the additional solder once used to resize the ring (please, read description above)
Condition: very good vintage, quite unusual in its design, with a beautifully colored stone and a nicely carved mask, with some light abrasions that are not readily visible to the naked eye and thus not offensive at all when you have the ring on (you see them here in extreme magnification thanks to the macro lens)
Inv# 15715