Question
Emerald Pendant
Hi again Peter.
Peter, you have assisted me with great information in the past, and I wanted to ask a question regarding a piece that we had discussed earlier. This is a natural emerald pendant containing one natural carved Zambian emerald weighing 139.87 carats, set in yellow gold with diamond, ruby, and sapphire accenting. The stone is GIA graded transparent-semi-transparent, with minimal clarity enhancement. When I first obtained the piece, I did not know anything of its individual history, but have since been able to determine that it is the work of a man named Ashok Sancheti. Evidently, he contributed one of his pieces (a 70 carat Colombian emerald carving in the shape of a traditional Greek bust) to the Smithsonian Museum, and his company supposedly has offices worldwide. I was also able to determine that his family is the official jeweler for the Indian royal family, but this is all that I have uncovered so far. Have you ever heard of this individual, and if so, what kind of material is he using? Is this older material or newer? I thought you might know. Anyway, thanks so much, and any information that you could provide would be helpful. I have included a photo of the piece...hopefully its not too large.
Sincerely,
Joseph A. Supley
AnswerHello Joseph,
I remember you showing me this piece before. I have heard of Mr Sancheti but am not familiar with his works. Looking at the piece, usually on the back of the stone, if you can see it, the carver will sign or initial the piece. This will help in the countenance of the piece. If his family was jeweler to one of the Mogul emperors and is documented as such then the piece will have even higher value. The design is not very intricate, this lessens the value a little. He is a carver and the material is what he can get for his purposes, it can be old or new. Most of the time it would be new since, older mined material is very scarce. A photo of his carving in the Smithsonian would be very valuable also. Just make ssure your points are documented properly. That is about all I can tell you, Good Luck,
Peter
