Royal Fine Jewelers Blog

The Perth Mint is celebrating the Chinese Year of the Horse with a limited-edition silver proof coin featuring the zodiac animal rendered in luminous, genuine Australian opal. The Australian Opal Lunar Series 2026 Year of the Horse 1oz Silver Proof Coin continues one of the Mint’s most popular annual traditions, blending precious metal artistry with a gemstone closely associated with the Land Down Under.



At the heart of the design is a vivid opal inlay shaped as a horse, crafted from authentic Australian opal — a gemstone prized for its ever-shifting “play of color.” Australia supplies the overwhelming majority of the world’s opal, and its use here brings movement and vitality to a Chinese symbol long associated with strength, independence, optimism and forward momentum. Because opal forms naturally, no two inlay patterns are exactly alike, making each coin in the limited mintage one of a kind.

Surrounding the opal horse on the reverse side of the coin are stylized marigold motifs, a flower traditionally associated with luck for those born in the Year of the Horse. Additional inscriptions include “YEAR OF THE HORSE,” the Chinese character for horse, the 2026 year-date, the coin’s weight and purity, and The Perth Mint’s iconic “P” mintmark. The coin is struck in proof quality from 99.99% pure silver, offering crisp detail and mirror-like fields.



The obverse features Dan Thorne’s effigy of King Charles III, shown in left-profile relief against a radial sunburst background. The design also confirms the coin’s status as Australian legal tender, with a face value of $1 AUD.

The 2026 release carries added cultural significance as it marks the Year of the Fire Horse, an elemental designation that occurs only once every 60 years. In Chinese tradition, Horse years are associated with energy, progress, and opportunity. The Fire Horse is believed to intensify those traits, symbolizing passion, decisive action, leadership and transformation. It is considered a catalytic year — one that favors creativity, bold movement and breaking free from old patterns, while encouraging balance to avoid impulsiveness.



Each coin is presented in a classic Perth Mint display case with a clear lid, housed in an illustrated shipper and accompanied by a numbered Certificate of Authenticity. With a strictly limited mintage of 6,000 coins worldwide and household limits in place, the release is expected to follow earlier Opal Lunar issues that sold out quickly.

Previous releases in the Australian Opal Lunar Series included the rooster (2017), dog (2018), pig (2019), rat (2020), ox (2021), tiger (2022), rabbit (2023), dragon (2024) and snake (2025).

Credits: Images courtesy of The Perth Mint.

Welcome to Music Friday, our regular feature spotlighting popular tunes with jewelry, gemstones or precious metals in the title or lyrics. In his 1983 song “Pressure Makes Diamonds,” country music legend Don Williams turns a bit of gemological wisdom into a tender meditation on marriage, resilience and enduring love.



At its heart, the song embraces the idea that stress doesn’t necessarily weaken a relationship — it can refine it. Williams sings about a long marriage that has weathered disappointment, disagreement and everyday struggles, yet emerges stronger because of them. The metaphor is especially fitting for jewelry lovers: diamonds don’t form without extraordinary pressure, and neither does a truly lasting personal bond.

Williams delivers the message plainly and powerfully in the song’s central verse: “Pressure makes diamonds much harder than stone / And they only get finer as each day goes on / We’ve been through some bad times / But we made it somehow / ‘Cause if pressure makes diamonds / Our love’s a diamond by now.”

(Gem fact: Most natural diamonds form under intense pressure and heat about 100 miles below the earth’s surface.)

Written by Bob McDill and John Schweers, “Pressure Makes Diamonds” appeared as the seventh track on Williams’ album, Yellow Moon. The album topped out at #12 on the US Billboard Country Albums chart.

Over the course of a career that spanned six decades, Williams scored 17 #1 country hits, including "Tulsa Time," "You're My Best Friend" and "Lord, I Hope This Day Is Good."

With his towering frame and unmistakably gentle bass-baritone, Don Williams became known as the “Gentle Giant” of country music — a nickname that captured both his physical presence and his unassuming, deeply reassuring style. His enduring influence on the genre was formally recognized in 2010, when he was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame.

Born Donald Ray Williams in 1939 in Floydada, TX, Williams took a winding path to stardom. After graduating from high school, he served two years in the U.S. Army Security Agency before turning his attention fully to music. In the 1960s, he co-founded the folk-pop group the Pozo-Seco Singers, which enjoyed modest success before disbanding in 1969. A brief detour outside the music business followed, but songwriting soon pulled him back in. In 1971, Williams landed a writing position with Jack Music Inc., a move that quickly led to a solo recording contract with JMI Records and the launch of one of country music’s most quietly successful careers.

Williams continued performing well into his 70s, retiring from touring in 2016. He passed away the following year at age 78, leaving behind a catalog of songs defined by warmth and emotional honesty.

Please check out the audio track of Williams performing “Pressure Makes Diamonds.” The lyrics are below if you’d like to sing along…

“Pressure Makes Diamonds”
Written by Bob McDill and John Schweers. Performed by Don Williams.

Well, we’ve had our troubles, we’ve had our hard times
Where some might have stumbled, we’ve always survived
Sometimes love weakens, when the chips are all down
But what we’ve got together gets stronger somehow.

Pressure makes diamonds much harder than stone
And they only get finer as each day goes on
We’ve been through some bad times
But we made it somehow
‘Cause if pressure makes diamonds,
Our love’s a diamond by now.

Well, we know the feelin’ when the world closes in
We’ve been there before, love, and we might go again
The road may get rocky, life may get hard
But the whole world together can’t tear us apart.

Pressure makes diamonds much harder than stone
And they only get finer as each day goes on
We’ve been through some bad times
But we made it somehow
‘Cause if pressure makes diamonds,
Our love’s a diamond by now.

Pressure makes diamonds much harder than stone
And they only get finer as each day goes on
We’ve been through some bad times
But we made it somehow
‘Cause if pressure makes diamonds,
Our love’s a diamond by now…



Credit: Screen capture via Youtube / Don Williams.

Petra Diamonds has once again reminded the jewelry world why South Africa’s Cullinan Mine holds near-mythic status. On Tuesday, the miner announced the recovery of an extraordinary 41.82-carat blue diamond — a rare Type IIb stone noted for its striking color and clarity.



Even in rough form, the gem is arresting. Its deep, saturated blue hue and apparent transparency place it among the most important blue diamond discoveries of recent years. Petra described the stone as being of “seemingly exceptional quality.”



Blue diamonds are among the rarest of all natural diamonds, with their color caused by trace amounts of boron absorbed deep within the Earth. Type IIb diamonds account for less than half of 1% of all diamonds ever discovered. Many form 300 miles or more below the Earth’s surface, far deeper than most other diamonds, which only adds to their mystique.

What excites collectors and connoisseurs alike is the stone’s potential future. Based on historical recovery rates of around 30 to 40 percent, expert cutters could fashion a polished “hero” diamond weighing approximately 14 to 18 carats. That range is particularly compelling because it aligns closely with the most famous and valuable blue diamonds ever sold at auction.

Among them are the following: the 14.62-carat Oppenheimer Blue, which fetched $57.5 million at Christie’s Geneva in 2016; the 15.10-carat De Beers Blue, sold by Sotheby’s in 2022 for $57.47 million; and the 12.03-carat Blue Moon of Josephine, which achieved $48.5 million in 2015. More recently, the 17.6-carat Bleu Royal brought $43.8 million at Christie’s in 2023. Should Petra’s new discovery yield a polished diamond of comparable size and quality, it could one day join this elite group.

The Cullinan Mine’s legacy only deepens that possibility. The historic deposit (renamed from the Premier Mine in 2003) famously produced the 3,106-carat Cullinan Diamond in 1905 — the largest gem-quality diamond ever discovered — as well as a remarkable lineage of celebrated blue diamonds over the past century. In recent years alone, the mine has yielded multiple high-value blue stones that have gone on to set price-per-carat benchmarks.

Petra Diamonds is currently analyzing the rough stone to determine the optimal cutting strategy and eventual method of sale.

Credits: Images courtesy of Petra Diamonds.

Last week, Furlong Auction House sold an exceptionally rare diamond specimen still embedded in its original kimberlite matrix for £10,500 (about $14,000) during its "Collectables & Memorabilia" sale at the London Diamond Bourse in Hatton Garden. The specimen dates to May 23, 1873, placing it squarely in the infancy of South Africa’s diamond industry — and at the dawn of De Beers’ rise.



The relic consists of a chunk of kimberlite — “blue ground” to early diamond miners — with a visible natural diamond crystal still locked in place. The term "blue ground" was used to describe weathered, bluish volcanic rock that carried diamonds from deep within the Earth’s mantle to the surface through violent eruptions millions of years ago. In the 19th century, recognizing blue ground marked a turning point: It signaled that diamonds weren’t just found in riverbeds, but could be mined directly from the Earth itself.



What makes this specimen especially remarkable is its intact provenance. A handwritten manuscript label affixed to the piece reads: “Rev’d W. Thompson – A token of esteem from the Cong’l Church, De Beers New Rush, May 23, 1873.” Such labeled specimens from the early Kimberley fields — particularly those with an exposed diamond — are extraordinarily scarce outside museum collections.

The specimen hails from Colesberg Kopje, later known simply as the Kimberley Mine, where diamonds were first discovered in 1871 during what became known as the “New Rush.” That rush followed the watershed 1867 discovery of the Eureka Diamond, found by 15-year-old Erasmus Jacobs near the Orange River. Within a few short years, Kimberley transformed from farmland into the epicenter of a global diamond boom.

For collectors, the appeal lies not just in rarity, but in symbolism. A diamond still embedded in kimberlite evokes the origin story of the world’s most famous diamond of all: the Cullinan. In 1905, Captain Frederick Wells spotted a glint in the wall of South Africa’s Premier Mine and pried out what turned out to be a 3,106-carat rough diamond, forever changing gem history.

South Africa would go on to dominate global diamond production for nearly a century. By the 1880s, the Kimberley mines produced 95 percent of the world’s diamonds, and the country remained the leading source by value well into the 20th century.

Credits: Images courtesy of Furlong Auctions.

An ornate medieval gold ring set with a luminous blue stone has emerged from beneath the streets of Tønsberg, Norway’s oldest town — an extraordinary discovery that offers a rare glimpse into elite jewelry craftsmanship of the High Middle Ages.



The ring was found this past summer by archaeologist Linda Åsheim of the Norwegian Institute for Cultural Heritage Research (NIKU) during routine archaeological supervision connected to municipal stormwater and drainage work.

Because the construction zone lies within the automatically protected cultural heritage site known as Tønsberg Medieval Town, municipal work of this kind legally requires archaeological oversight — and is occasionally rewarded with what archaeologists call a “dream find.”



Åsheim was working alone when she uncovered the ring roughly 7 centimeters (about 2.7 inches) below the surface, embedded in a cultivation layer.

“It was completely surreal,” she said in a NIKU press statement, describing the moment as an “out-of-body experience.”



She even asked nearby construction workers if they were playing a trick on her. “Now I just have to quit being an archaeologist,” she joked. “I’ve reached the top.”

Dating evidence from a spruce twig in the layer above the ring places the object between 1167 AD and 1269 AD, firmly within the High Middle Ages. The ring itself features a gold band decorated with delicate filigree — fine twisted wires carefully soldered into spiraling patterns — accented with tiny granulated gold spheres. At its center sits an oval blue gemstone that closely resembles a sapphire.

The stone is most likely glass treated with cobalt. During the High Middle Ages, cobalt-rich minerals were ground and added to molten glass to create deep, desirable blues. In medieval Europe, blue stones carried powerful symbolic meaning. They were believed to embody divine authority, protect against illness, cool “inner heat” and promote chastity — qualities prized by royalty and clergy alike.

The craftsmanship tells a broader story. According to Marianne Vedeler, professor at the University of Oslo’s Museum of Cultural History, the ring’s decorative elements echo techniques introduced to Scandinavia from the Byzantine world via Carolingian goldsmithing traditions. Such methods were rare and costly, signaling access to continental trade networks and exceptional skill.

The find is particularly significant given its rarity. As of today, only 63 medieval gold rings are registered in Norway’s national artifact database, Unimus. Project manager Hanne Ekstrøm Jordahl of NIKU noted that it has been 15 years since a gold ring of this kind was last discovered in Tønsberg.

The ring’s small size — approximately a modern US size 5.5 — suggests it likely belonged to a woman of high social standing. During the Middle Ages, rings were potent symbols of wealth, power and unbreakable bonds, their circular form believed to offer spiritual protection in addition to material value.

Found in a town once dominated by the royal castle complex Tunsberghus, the ring may have adorned the hand of a noblewoman or high-ranking cleric who lived in or passed through this important medieval center.

Credits: Linda Åsheim image courtesy of NIKU. Excavation photo by Linda Åsheim, NIKU. Ring photo courtesy of NIKU.

On January 9, the Princess of Wales marked her 44th birthday not with a formal portrait, but with a quietly powerful short film. Mother Nature: Winter, the fourth and final installment in Kate Middleton’s reflective video series, uses landscape, motion and symbolism to explore themes of healing, transition, and renewal. For jewelry watchers, one fleeting but unforgettable moment stood out: Middleton running her hand — adorned with her iconic sapphire engagement ring — through a flowing stream.



The winter-themed short opens with a meditation on stillness and introspection. “Even in the coldest, darkest season,” Middleton narrates, “winter has a way of bringing us stillness, patience and quiet consideration.” With the camera fixed on water flowing over stone, Middleton’s hand remains at the center of the frame, her sapphire and diamond ring catching the light as it passes through the stream — a quiet, deliberate gesture rich with meaning.



The ring she wears is one of the most recognizable heirlooms in modern royal history. Originally chosen by Princess Diana from Garrard’s catalog in 1981, the ring features a 12-carat oval Ceylon sapphire encircled by 14 round diamonds, set in 18-karat white gold.



Prince William later passed the ring to Kate for their engagement, creating a powerful throughline of memory, love and continuity across generations. Middleton wears the ring today in its original form — remarkably, she shares Diana’s exact finger size — often stacked with her Welsh gold wedding band and an eternity ring for a modern, personal look.

In Mother Nature: Winter, that lineage takes on new resonance. Water, long associated with cleansing and renewal, becomes a visual metaphor for release and forward movement. The Princess, who has spoken openly about her recent cancer journey and is currently in remission, has described the series as a vital tool for her own recovery.

“The Mother Nature series has been a deeply personal, creative reflection on how nature has helped me heal,” she said. “But it is also a story about the power of nature and creativity in collective healing.”

Rather than treating the ring as a static emblem of royalty, the film reframes it as part of a lived experience — one shaped by vulnerability, resilience and reflection. As Middleton notes in the narration, “the rivers within us flow with ease. Fears washed away. Cleanse and purify.”

In that quiet moment by the stream, an heirloom long associated with fairy-tale romance becomes something else entirely: a symbol of renewal, connection and the enduring power of both nature and jewelry to carry meaning through life’s seasons. You may check out the video here…

Credits: Screen captures via YouTube / The Prince and Princess of Wales.

Music Friday is when we spotlight songs with jewelry, gemstones or precious metals in the title or lyrics. Today, international blues troubadour Eric Bibb turns a single gemstone metaphor into a powerful message about perseverance, self-worth and encouragement in his uplifting 2006 track “Shine On.”



At the heart of the song is one resonant line: “You’re a diamond to me.” It’s not a boast about wealth or status, but a reminder of intrinsic value — the idea that pressure, patience and persistence can reveal brilliance where others might only see rough edges. Bibb’s diamond imagery becomes a stand-in for human potential, urging listeners to keep striving even when the road feels steep.

Bibb sings, “Don’t stop ’til you win your prize / Lean on all the love that is in my eyes / You’re a diamond to me, yes you are / Shine on.” The gemstone reference does the heavy lifting here. Diamonds don’t shine by accident; they emerge from pressure and are brought to life through careful cutting and unhurried mastery, a process that mirrors personal growth and hard-earned achievement.

Co-written with Figge Boström, “Shine On” appears on Bibb’s album Diamond Days. Reviewing the release for PopMatters, critic Joe Montague noted, “There are no rough edges on Diamond Days or Eric Bibb… The man is so effortless when he plays that one has difficulty determining where the guitar stops and where Bibb begins.”

Born in New York City in 1951, Bibb grew up surrounded by music. His father was active in the 1960s folk scene, and family friends included Pete Seeger, Joan Baez and Bob Dylan. When Bibb expressed interest in learning guitar, it was Dylan who famously advised the 11-year-old to “Keep it simple, forget all that fancy stuff” — guidance that still echoes in Bibb’s clear, uncluttered songwriting style.

After a brief stint studying psychology and Russian at Columbia University, Bibb left academia behind and moved to Paris, immersing himself in pre-war blues traditions. That decision launched an international career that has taken him across Europe, Canada, Australia and the United States. Along the way, he earned three Grammy nominations for albums including Shakin’ a Tailfeather (1997), Migration Blues (2017) and Ridin’ (2023).

Nearly two decades after “Shine On” was released, its message remains timely — and Bibb remains very much in the spotlight. In 2026, he is actively touring in support of his album One Mississippi, with dates scheduled across the UK, Europe and a full-band Australian tour in May.

Please enjoy the audio clip of Eric Bibb performing “Shine On,” and feel free to sing along with the lyrics below…

“Shine On”
Written by Eric Bibb and Figge Bostrom. Performed by Eric Bibb.

Life gives you the runaround you say
You wanna know
How much dues must you pay

Well, you can pay off what you want
When there’s a will
There’s always a way

Keeping your eyes on
That mountain top
Stepping up time
Don’t ever, ever stop

Keep on when your mind says quit
Dream on ’til you find your living it
I’ll be right by your side
Yeah baby keep on
Don’t stop ’til you win your prize
Lean on all the love that is in my eyes
You’re a diamond to me, yes you are
Shine on

I know what you’ve been through
I see
But it’s time to leave it behind and let it be
Yeah

Hard-earned wisdom is something you can’t buy
It’s the wings of experience
That make you fly

Don’t look back
Don’t look back
Don’t turn around
You’re on the right track

Keep on when your mind says quit
Dream on ’til you find your living it
I’ll be right by your side
Yeah baby keep on
Don’t stop ’til you win your prize
Lean on all the love that is in my eyes
You’re a diamond to me, yes you are
Shine on
Shine on

Keep on when your mind says quit
Dream on ’til you find your living it
I’ll be right by your side
Yeah baby
Don’t stop ’til you win your prize
Lean on all the love that’s in my eyes
You’re a diamond to me, yes you are
Shine on
Shine on
Baby you got to shine on
That’s what you’re born to do
Me and you
You got to shine on
Sparkle baby

Baby you got to
Shine on



Credit: Photo by Bryan Ledgard, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

A simple question to Siri turned into a glittering family memory — and a genuine diamond discovery — for a Texas family visiting Arkansas’ Crater of Diamonds State Park just days before the new year.



James Ward, a 41-year-old high school teacher from Cypress, TX, uncovered a 2.09-carat yellowish-brown diamond on December 30 while exploring the park with his wife, Elizabeth, and their sons, Adrian (9) and Austin (7). Planning for the unlikely adventure began weeks earlier, in mid-December, during a casual moment at home.

“One day we were watching TV, and Austin came and said, ‘Mommy, Mommy, is there any place in Texas or nearby that we can mine for crystals?’” Elizabeth recalled.

A quick query to Siri pointed the family toward Murfreesboro, AR — home to the only public diamond mine in the world where visitors can keep what they find.

Elizabeth said, “I sent the link to James, and he’s like, ‘Oh wait, that’s only like six hours away. We can go!’”

With no previous holiday plans holding them back, the Wards packed up and made the six-hour drive to the park, arriving on December 29. Their first day in the 37.5-acre search field proved challenging. Winter temperatures were biting, and after four hours of searching, the family nearly called it quits.

“We were so cold,” Elizabeth said. “But Adrian was the one who wanted to come back.”



The 9-year-old's persistence made all the difference. On their second day, James was raking through soil by hand near the park’s West Drain area when something caught his eye — a metallic-looking crystal unlike the pebbles around it.

“I didn’t know what it was,” James said, “but I knew it was different.”



He slipped the stone into a paper sack with their other finds and headed to the park’s Diamond Discovery Center, where staff confirmed the family’s luck: a 2.09-carat diamond, roughly the size of a corn kernel.



According to Assistant Park Superintendent Waymon Cox, the shield-shaped gem displays the dark yellowish-brown hue and metallic luster typical of Crater diamonds, though it is a broken crystal — common for stones forged under immense geological pressure.

Diamonds discovered at the park formed deep in the Earth’s upper mantle and were carried to the surface by an ancient volcanic pipe. Many show chips, fractures or internal features from that journey.

"Given its current size, you can imagine how much bigger Mr. Ward’s diamond might have been as a complete crystal!” Cox explained.

Brown diamonds account for roughly 20 percent of all diamonds found at the park, with their color caused by a phenomenon known as plastic deformation — structural irregularities that affect how light travels through the stone. Diamonds discovered at the park average just one-fifth of a carat, making the Ward family’s find especially notable.

The family named their gem the Ward Diamond, and its future remains undecided.

“I’ll have to see how much it’s worth first,” James said.

For now, its greatest value may be the story itself — a reminder that persistence, curiosity and a child’s simple question can sometimes lead to extraordinary discoveries.

Credits: Images courtesy of Arkansas State Parks.

For Trevor Van Camp and Danielle Jenkins, a winter proposal at Boyne Mountain Resort in Boyne Falls, MI, became an unforgettable test of nerves, love and human kindness when an engagement ring slipped through a groom-to-be's trembling fingers and plunged 118 feet from SkyBridge Michigan into the snow below.



Van Camp had planned an aerial proposal because his girlfriend had been sending him TikTok videos of the resort’s SkyBridge — an illuminated, 1,200-foot-long pedestrian suspension bridge strung with more than 200,000 twinkling lights. Though Van Camp admits he’s “not a big heights guy,” he booked a surprise weekend getaway just for her.



After taking the chairlift to the top, the couple began their walk across the bridge, suspended between two mountain peaks. Van Camp stopped midway, suggesting they take a photo. Then he dropped to one knee.

“She said yes,” he recalled. “And when I went to get the ring out of the box — mind you, I’m shaking — I looked down. Not a good idea.”

The ring slipped free, falling through the bridge’s open grating and vanishing into the snowy ski slope below.



“We panicked for a minute,” Van Camp said. “Then we looked at each other and said, ‘We’ve got to find it.’”

What followed was a two-and-a-half-hour search beneath the bridge, aided by Boyne Mountain’s night shift snowmaking supervisor, Pat Harper, who arrived with two metal detectors. As night deepened and hope began to fade, the couple prepared to leave around 10 pm.

But Harper and his associates weren't done.

“They promised us they were going to find my ring,” Jenkins said. “There were no ands, ifs or buts about that.”

After the couple departed, Harper continued alone, sweeping the snow-covered terrain. When his detector sounded near a set of footprints, he began digging. At first, nothing. Then, with one last scoop of snow, the edge of the ring appeared.



“I kind of sat there for a minute,” Harper said. “There was no way I just found that.”

The next day, as the couple packed up and prepared to visit a local jeweler to start over, they received confirmation that the ring had been found. The couple returned to Boyne Mountain, where Van Camp finally placed it on Jenkins’ finger.



“I give big props and kudos to Pat,” Jenkins said. “He saved the day."

"We now have a story to tell of our engagement," she added. "It's our story to share. We will probably come back in the wintertime to finish our journey across the bridge with the lights and enjoy the full experience that we cut short to find my ring."

Credits: Video screen captures and promotional images courtesy of Boyne Mountain Resort.

January’s birthstone is often celebrated for its rich color, durability and deep symbolism — but few garnets have ever made a statement quite like "The World’s Largest Polished Garnet." Carved into a jewel-encrusted egg by renowned German lapidary artist Manfred Wild, this extraordinary objet d’art elevates garnet from gemstone to sculptural masterpiece.



Reminiscent of the imperial jeweled eggs created for the Russian court by Fabergé more than a century ago, Wild’s "Garnet and Diamond Egg Creation" was fashioned from an immense rough almandine garnet sourced in Odisha (formerly Orissa), India — one of the world’s most important deposits for that garnet variety. Once polished, the garnet alone weighs an astonishing 5,696 carats and glows with the rich, wine-red hue prized in fine almandine.



The egg’s artistry extends far beyond its remarkable size. When opened, it reveals a rotating diamond-set cross mounted in 18-karat gold and platinum, set on both sides with 456 diamonds totaling approximately 8.50 carats. At its center sits a faceted octahedral brown diamond weighing about 5.74 carats, accented by five natural yellow diamond cubes totaling approximately 10.04 carats. The cross rises from a large, mirror-polished rock crystal quartz sphere measuring 125 mm in diameter, creating a striking contrast of transparency and brilliance.



Below the egg, an 18-karat gold “crown of thorns” functions as both collar and mechanism, allowing the egg to open and close when turned. The tapering stem features two precise rows of 46 calibré-cut almandine garnets separated by a faceted rock crystal spacer, while the base — another substantial rock crystal — has been embellished with 24 flat garnet inlays. In total, the piece incorporates 403 grams of 18-karat gold and 30.5 grams of platinum, standing approximately 12 inches tall.

Wild, whose family has been cutting gemstones in Idar-Oberstein since the 17th century, is celebrated for transforming rare materials into objects of fantasy and refinement. This garnet egg is widely regarded as one of his most ambitious and accomplished creations.

In November of 2014, the “Garnet and Diamond Egg Creation” was one of the top lots in a Bonham’s Los Angeles auction titled “Gems, Minerals, Lapidary Works of Art and Natural History.” Its pre-sale estimate was set at $300,000 to $400,000, but the piece remained unsold. Its current owner hasn't been publicly identified, adding to the mystique surrounding the piece.

While garnet is best known for its deep red varieties, it is one of the most diverse gemstone families in nature. Common garnets used in jewelry include almandine, pyrope, spessartine, grossularite, andradite, demantoid, tsavorite, rhodolite, hessonite, and uvarovite. Their colors range from fiery orange and vivid green to purple, pink, and near-black, depending on trace elements such as iron, manganese, calcium and aluminum.

As a January birthstone symbolizing protection, vitality and enduring love, garnet has long held a place of honor. In this amazing egg, it also claims its place among the world’s great lapidary achievements.

Credits: Images courtesy of Bonhams.