Popularized by daring women flouting Prohibition in the 1920s, cocktail rings were conceived to make a bold statement, drawing attention with their outsize glamour to coupe-clutching hands. Vintage aquamarine cocktail rings, with their stones' dreamy blue hue that evokes the sea, are definitely the kind of show-stoppers you're looking for if you happen to be in the market for a dazzling vintage cocktail ring.
Perhaps the one gemstone that best embodies the glimmering blue of the ocean is aquamarine, not just in name but also in color. Aqua marina (Latin for water and sea), March’s birthstone, is often crystal clear and blue. Often affordable in price, aquamarine cocktail rings and other types of aquamarine rings belong in everyone’s jewelry box.
Aquamarine is a precious gemstone from the mineral beryl family. Its cousin is the emerald. Like other beryl varieties, aquamarines are rated 7.5 to 8 on the Mohs Hardness Scale. This means that they are soft enough for jewelers to cut to their client’s specs but also durable enough for daily wear. “With aquamarine, the best shapes are emerald and oval cuts, which maximize an even amount of color throughout the stone,” says Roshni Kothari, cofounder of Roshe Jewels alongside her sister Reshma. “The color of the aquamarine can also be boosted by a cut that has higher crowns and deeper pavilions.”
In addition to the prominent role it played in the cocktail rings of the 1920s — or as an accent stone paired with diamonds in other accessories during the Art Deco era — aquamarine has also made appearances on some of the grandest of great dames. The Brazilian government gifted Eleanor Roosevelt with a 1,847-carat aquamarine in 1935 and Queen Elizabeth II received a sizable aquamarine upon her 1953 coronation; this stone is now the focal point of her aquamarine tiara. And renowned Tiffany & Co. designer Jean Schlumberger made a diamond Bow setting for a 148.5-carat aquamarine, which was originally exhibited at the 1893 World’s Columbian Exhibition, now in the collection of the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago. (Tiffany aquamarine rings are highly sought by jewelry lovers, incidentally!)
On 1stDibs, find a range of vintage aquamarine cocktail rings and other aquamarine jewelry.
