Seaman Schepps 14K Turbo Shell Ring

Rare vintage 14K gold turbo shell ring with coral accents and rope band. Stamped "Seaman Schepps" on back. This ring was manufactured some time before 1972, when Seaman Schepps' daughter, Patricia Schepps Vail, took over the company and started incporparting her intials into the maker's mark, "P.S.V. of Seaman Schepps."

ABOUT SEAMAN SCHEPPS

Seaman Schepps was born in 1881 on Manhattan’s Lower East Side. In 1934, he opened his a jewelry store featuring his exclusive designs on Madison Avenue.  Schepps blended the unexpected — marrying diamonds, precious metals and man-made materials, choosing his media brilliantly to create a splendid palette of tone and hue. Through this unparalleled experimentation, Schepps pioneered a unique style of jewelry whose sense of splendor offered a new perspective to the world of fine jewelry.

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. For example, a well known client brought him a necklace of beautiful turbo shells from the Indian Ocean, to be fashioned into earrings. Schepps immediately envisioned them with cabochon turquoise and coral set on the points and mounted with gold wire. In delighting his client, Schepps created one of the most popular trends in twentieth century jewelry.

His client list included President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, the Duchess of Windsor, and members of the Du Pont, Mellon and Rockefeller families. Many renowned art collectors, notably Andy Warhol, Joan Quinn and Holly Soloman, have become aficionados of Schepps’ work, collecting it as works of art. By serving these most powerful and influential individuals, Schepps became known as “America’s Court Jeweler”.

SIZE

8

WEIGHT

17.27 grams

DIMENSIONS

Shell is roughly 3cm tall, 1.5cm wide; stands roughly 2cm off the finger

CONDITION

Excellent vintage condition. Wear consistent with age. A jeweler who inspected this suggested that the band or shank might have been repaired at some point but was not certain. He also noted the small crack (shown in photos) on the shell but also said this could have been naturally occurring during the manufacturing process when the shell was drilled to accommodate the coral piece. The coral piece at the base twists when manipulated but is secure. Price adjusted to accommodate these potential blemishes.

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