Shreve & Co., San Francisco Art Deco ring set with a trio of round cut diamonds (approx. 2 1/4 carats TW) set in platinum with caliber cut onyx surrounding the three diamonds and further set with four round cut diamonds flanking either side of the ring shank, signed: Shreve & Co., 950, Platinum, c.1930
Art Deco ruby and diamond ring set in platinum topped 18k yellow gold, four round diamonds (approx. 1 carat TW) set with 20 square and caliber cut natural rubies (approx. 3 carats TW) further set with 34 round diamonds (approx. 2.50 carats TW) c.1920
Marchesini, Rome (attr.) Etruscan Revival mid-19th Century elaborate jeweled “Maltese Cross” 18k gold ring set with four rectangular step-cut sapphires and one round-cut sapphire and eight pearls in a highly detailed setting with granulation and twisted gold wire designs, c.1860
Art Deco “Fire Opal” necklace, frosted rock crystal round beads and four sided custom rock crystal bezels set in 18K yellow gold with 16 round–cut accent diamonds featuring five large natural fire opals (G.I.A certificate, dimension of each fire opal, 13.00 x 8.15 x 6.20mm for a TW of approx. 17.50 carats), c. 1940’s
Seaman Schepps, New York “Maltese Cross” brooch, one large round cut central citrine (approx. 45 carats) set with 4 large square step-cut citrines (approx. 108 carats TW) and further set with four extra long baguette citrines (approx. 13 carats TW) in a radiating pattern set in 14k yellow gold (total citrine carat weight of 166 carats), signed: Seaman Schepps, 14k, c. 1940’s
An immigrant’s son, who grew up in the tenements of New York’s Lower East Side, Seaman Schepps rose to prominence in the 1930s with jewelry designs that challenged the status quo and defined a new style for the American woman. With his chunky brooches, “barbaric” bracelets and “bubble” earrings, Schepps pioneered a unique style of jewelry whose sense of splendor offered a new perspective to the world of fine jewelry.
Witty, over-the-top and flattering, Schepps’ jewelry embodied style and originality and was featured on the covers of Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, Look and other magazines. It appealed to a myriad of clients from Katherine Hepburn to Andy Warhol to the Duchess of Windsor and greatly influenced his contemporaries. Today, some 50 years after his death, he continues to inspire modern jewelers.
Through the 1930s, and into the 40s and 50s, new clients flocked to him at his store on Madison Avenue. Often clients wanted a one-of-a-kind bauble and commissioned Schepps to incorporate their old jewelry into a fresh new design. Frequently this led to landmark decisions that helped distinguish Schepps as an extraordinary talent. His client list included Coco Chanel, Elsa Schiaparelli, the Duchess of Windsor, and members of the Du Pont, Mellon and Rockefeller families. By serving these most powerful and influential individuals, Schepps became known as “America’s Court Jeweler”.
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