Are you trying to liquidate an estate with estate jewelry that includes gold rings? If so, you probably figure that the rings are valuable – and maybe much more valuable than other items in the estate. Central Mass Auctions can help.
Contact Central Mass Auctions today, or read on to discover more about auctioning your gold ring(s).
Though some vintage or antique jewelry isn’t worth much more than the melt value of the gold in it, other pieces have much more pull. We’ve seen a vintage plain gold 18K trinity ring sell for $1,350, a 18K men’s ruby diamond gold ring go for $4,850, and antique engraved sapphire ring haul in $19,500.
We can’t guarantee that your rings will bring in those kinds of prices, of course, but we can say with certainty that you don’t want to go to the local pawn shop. You need an appraisal and a well-attended auction if you want to sell your pieces for all they are worth.
What makes a gold ring valuable?
The first thing we’d look at is the time period in which a ring was made. Gold rings that are over 100 years old are considered antiques. Though that isn’t a guarantee of value, it increases the chance that the piece will be valuable. Four periods are especially valuable: the Georgian period (1714-1837), the Victorian period (1840-1890), the Art Nouveau period (1890-1910) and the Edwardian period (1901-1910).
Vintage pieces might include art deco pieces from the 1930s, or the mod style from the 1960s. Some pieces from the 1960s and 1980s are relatively popular, too.
The next factor is whether the piece was handmade or mass-produced. By the 1940s and 1950s it became much more common to see hand-produced jewelry, so rings from that time period might not be very valuable.
Does the ring include a gemstone? The cut of the gemstone can make a big difference, especially if you have a cut that isn’t produced anymore.
We also look for hallmarks: not just the one that tells us what the gold content of the ring is, but hallmarks that tell us about the designer or the crafter.
Of course, the condition of the ring influences its value significantly.
If gold rings are usually valuable (they’re GOLD), why get an appraisal?
You can attempt to give yourself a “ball park” idea of the value of your gold rings by looking them up on online platforms, but those numbers may differ wildly from what you may actually be able to receive.
An appraisal helps you pinpoint the true value of your rings, to determine whether they’re of mediocre, high, or very high value. You can sell the rings with more confidence, and bidders will bid (and outbid) with more confidence and determination.
Why sell your gold rings at auction?
One reason is to save time and avoid a rabbit hole. Without an auction, you’ll have to try to contact multiple buyers in the hopes of getting the best price for your ring. You could try to sell it online, but there’s a good chance you’ll sell the piece for far less than it is worth if you do. At some point, you’ll get tired of the process, but will have sunken so much time into trying to sell the ring that you decide to offload it for some money, rather than for all the money you could have gotten through a well-run auction.
Of course, an auction puts your pieces in front of the right buyers: people who understand the worth of what they are buying and who are willing to pay for it. They aren’t necessarily interested in other items, but they do have an affinity for jewelry.
If you’ve got gold rings you don’t want on your fingers or in a box, we’re here to help. Contact Central Mass Auctions today.
