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Guatemalan Manzana Jade Slab

Guatemalan Manzana Jade Slab
Photo Credit: Paul’s Rok Shop

Guatemalan Manzana Jade Slab

Buy It Now Price: $120 (price as of 2019; item no longer available)

Pros:

-This light-green Manzana jade slab comes from the Motagua River valley in Guatemala, which was the source of the jades so prized by the Mayan civilization.

-It measures approximately 4.5 inches (11.4 cm) tall by 4 inches (10.2 cm) wide by 0.5 inches (1.2 cm) thick and weighs a substantial 501 grams (1.1 pounds).

-Manzana, the Spanish word for “apple”, is a moniker sometimes applied to pleasingly light-green varieties of jadeite jade from Central America.  Manzana jade was one of the Mayan civilization’s most treasured materials.

-A quick density calculation verifies that this piece is indeed genuine jadeite jade.  To do this we take the weight of the stone (501 grams) and divide it by the slab’s volume (11.4 cm x 10.2 cm x 1.2 cm = 139.5 cm3).  This gives us a density of 3.59 gm/cm3, which is close enough (given the specimen’s slightly irregular outline) to jadeite’s range of 3.25 to 3.45 gm/cm3.

-One of the great attributes of this Manzana jade slab is its shape; it is the perfect size for turning into a bangle bracelet.  Not only that, but the slab’s quality is particularly high, with a fine, even color and some evidence of translucence.  This is especially important because only the best quality jades are fit to be carved into bangle bracelets.

-This Manzana jade slab, like all high quality Guatemalan jadeite jades, is an incredibly underappreciated tangible asset right now.  In addition, they are rarely treated via bleaching or dyeing, meaning that you get a perfectly natural gemstone in a world overrun by synthetics and fakes.

-With a buy-it-now price of $120, this Manzana jade slab is selling for only $239 a kilo.  I find this price to be absurdly low given jadeite jade’s rarity and the excellent quality of the piece.

 

Cons:

-The eBay seller who is offering this jade slab, Paul’s Rok Shop, will stop selling rough jades by the end of June 2019 due to the low profit margin involved.  So if you are reading this article anytime after that date, it is likely that this specific piece of jade is no longer available.  For any who are interested, I recently wrote an article on the tragedy of losing this fine jade dealer.

 

Read more fascinating Antique Sage gemstone spotlight posts here.

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3 Troy Ounce VPS Silver Bar – Crack Jenny’s Teacup

3 Troy Ounce VPS Silver Bar - Crack Jenny's Teacup
Photo Credit: Barry’s Postcards

3 Troy Ounce VPS Silver Bar – Crack Jenny’s Teacup

Buy It Now Price: $110 (price as of 2019; item no longer available)

Pros:

-This limited edition 3 troy ounce VPS silver bar features pirate cutlasses, oxidized surfaces and Vollmer Poured Silver’s skull and crossbones logo.

-This artisan hand-poured silver bar weighs 3 troy ounces and is made from solid, .999 fine silver.

-Vollmer Poured Silver, also known as VPS, is a precious metal micro-foundry located in the picturesque Berkshire Mountains of western Massachusetts.  All VPS silver bars are individually designed and hand-poured using traditional methods by the studio’s founder, Devin Vollmer.

-Modern hand-poured silver bars are becoming increasingly popular among collectors because of their superior workmanship, pleasing compositions and interesting visual effects.  I consider hand-poured silver to be a stealth tangible asset investment suitable for the adventurous alternative asset investor.

-This VPS silver bar is #4 of a strictly limited edition run of only 5 specimens.  This is an incredibly small mintage in the world of hand-poured silver, where limited editions of 100 or 200 examples are the norm.

-This VPS silver bar comes with its original certificate of authenticity signed by Devin Vollmer himself.  It also identifies the work’s name as “Crack Jenny’s Teacup” – a reference to pirate slang from the 17th and 18th century.

-There are many different small companies that specialize in hand-poured silver bars, including Yeager’s Poured Silver, Bit Bullion, Mutiny Metals and MK Barz.  But in my opinion, none of them can compare to the sheer artistic character and aesthetic qualities of Vollmer Poured Silver bars.

-I believe this Crack Jenny’s Teacup silver art bar is well worth the $110 price tag.  The low asking price also means that this VPS silver bar is attainable by investors of even modest means.  This is an underappreciated advantage in a world where it can be difficult to open a brokerage account for less than $1,000.

 

Cons:

-The cost per ounce for this work is $36.67 ($110 asking price / 3 troy ounces), which is on the high side for a silver art bar.  Artisan hand-poured silver bars from other makers can often be found in the $25 to $30 range.  However, given the absurdly low mintage and tremendous artistic beauty of this VPS silver bar, I feel the higher cost per ounce is justified.

 

Read more fascinating Antique Sage bullion spotlight posts here.

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English Georgian Sterling Silver Forks, Circa 1816

English Georgian Sterling Silver Forks, Circa 1816
Photo Credit: xzx

English Georgian Sterling Silver Forks, Circa 1816

Buy It Now Price: $399.95 (price as of 2019; item no longer available)

Pros:

-A ram’s head family crest adorns the back of this stately set of 8 King’s pattern English Georgian sterling silver forks from the early 19th century.

-Each one of these dinner forks measures a full 7.9 inches (20 cm) long and weighs an immensely heavy 2.9 troy ounces (91 grams).  This is double the weight of an average antique silver dinner fork!  The total weight of the set is a whopping 23.5 troy ounces (730 grams) of solid sterling silver.

-Britain’s Georgian period extended from 1714 to 1837.  It was a time of strict class hierarchy in which the aristocracy exercised outsized power on British politics, culture and foreign policy.  The late Georgian era produced many famous British authors who are still celebrated today, such as the novelist Jane Austen and the poet John Keats.

-The hallmarks on this set of Georgian dinner forks confirm they were made in London, England around the year 1816. Although the maker’s mark is worn, it is possible that William Eley and William Fearn – a pair of silversmith who were active in the British capital in the early 19th century – produced this superb set.

-These Georgian sterling silver forks were forged in the renowned King’s pattern, which sprang to popularity in the early 19th century along with the quite similar Queen’s pattern.  Both the King’s and Queen’s patterns were characterized by decorative shells and scrolling foliage.

-With silver trading at $14.40 an ounce, the bullion value of these Georgian sterling silver forks is about $313.  This means they are selling for only $87 over melt – a mere 28% premium over their scrap value.

-19th century British King’s and Queen’s pattern flatware could be either double-struck (with the design on both the front and back) or single-struck (with the design only on the front).  This particular set was double-struck, which was the norm on heavier, higher quality pieces.  This boosts the forks’ value and desirability considerably.

-The ridiculously low premium over melt value for these 200 year old Georgian sterling silver forks pretty much debunks the efficient market theory in my opinion, at least in the world of antiques.  This set is a phenomenal deal at only $400.  So scoop up these Georgian silver treasures now before someone else beats you too it!

 

Cons:

-This set of Georgian dinner forks has moderate wear, which one would expect for antiques that are fully two centuries old.  Honestly, I’m grasping at straws for anything negative to say about them.

 

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Illuminated Book of Hours Leaf from Rouen, Circa 1470

Illuminated Book of Hours Leaf from Rouen, Circa 1470
Photo Credit: LEAVES-OF-OLD

Illuminated Book of Hours Leaf from Rouen, Circa 1470

Buy It Now Price: $499 (price as of 2019; item no longer available)

Pros:

-This vibrant French illuminated Book of Hours leaf was sumptuously hand-scribed in the medieval city of Rouen sometime between the years 1470 and 1490 AD.

-This medieval manuscript leaf measures 178 mm (7 inches) tall by 125 mm (4.9 inches) wide.  This is a good size for an illuminated Book of Hours leaf, which tended to be fairly small compared to modern books.

-A Book of Hours was a medieval prayer book intended for personal worship at home.  Only the very wealthiest families could afford to commission a Book of Hours, which – like all medieval manuscripts – were completely handmade.  It could take a specialized monastery or manuscript factory more than a year of exacting work to complete a single copy.

-Rouen is a city in the Normandy region of France, situated on the lower reaches of the Seine River.  It was one of the most important cities of medieval France, with a population of about 40,000 inhabitants in the late 15th century.

-This illuminated Book of Hours leaf is richly decorated with red, blue, green and gold pigments, and includes an elaborate floral border on both the verso and recto.  It is an incredibly fine example of late medieval art, yet remains within financial reach for the average person.

-In the late 15th century, France was still a patchwork of feudal duchies and counties.  However, the end of the Hundred Years’ War in 1453 saw the English definitively expelled from all French territory (except for Calais), laying the groundwork for the modern French State.

-The text of this illuminated Book of Hours leaf is written in Latin, which was the lingua franca of medieval Europe.

–Medieval illuminated manuscripts are one of today’s most underappreciated alternative investments.  They are quintessential examples of medieval European art, complete with vivid colors, Gothic script and hand-drawn illuminations.  But fine specimens can still be purchased for only a few hundred dollars each – a mind-blowingly low price in a world filled with $10 cappuccinos and $100 a month gym memberships.

-I believe the buy-it-now price of $499 is quite reasonable for an illuminated Book of Hours leaf of this caliber, especially considering the stunning aesthetics of the piece.  It would look great mounted on the wall in your study, bedroom or living room.

 

Cons:

-Expect to pay an extra $100 to $200 to have this medieval masterpiece properly framed with acid-free, archival-quality matting and UV-resistant glass.  However, I consider this is a small price to pay to protect such a wonderful manuscript in perpetuity.

 

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