Square, fancy-shaped and calibré-cut rubies, round, tapered baguette, baguette-cut and kite-shaped diamonds, platinum, circa 1925, brooches detachable from fitting and may be worn as individual clips, each clip and fitting signed Yard

AGL, 2018, copy of report no. 1096790 A and B: 20 rubies, Burma (Myanmar), no gemological evidence of heat

Diamonds: for an approximate total weight of 4.00 - 6.00 carats

Size/Dimensions: as brooch 6.3 cm long; as individual clips 3.2 cm high each
Gross weight: 36.5 grams

Christie's, New York, April 2019, sale number 17450, lot 74

Cf. N. Kuzmanovic, Yard: The Life and Magnificent Jewelry of Raymond C. Yard, New York, The Vendome Press, 2007, p. 16

Known for his unique flair and keen eye for quality, Raymond Carter Yard set a high standard for American jewellery design in the 20th century.
As a boy Raymond Yard became known to William Elder Marcus, owner of Marcus & Co, an established jewellery firm in New York City. After Yard’s father died, Marcus offered the young Raymond a job, and at thirteen years of age he quit school and moved to Manhattan with his mother. Under the guidance of W. Marcus, Yard immersed himself in the world of jewellery and steadily climbed the ranks of the firm, forming close relationships with the elite of American society along the way. Yard’s honest demeanour and knowledge of jewellery caught the eye of John D. Rockefeller, Jr. and they developed a personal and professional relationship that would greatly affect Yard’s career. Rockefeller strongly encouraged Raymond Yard to establish his own firm. Yard resigned from Marcus & Co. at the age of 37 and opened his first salon in May 1922, at 527 Fifth Avenue. That year, the firm serviced over a thousand customers. Within four years, with business booming and more space needed, Raymond C. Yard, Inc. had moved location up Fifth Avenue. Raymond Yard’s extensive client base greatly helped him to grow his company. Rockefeller believed in Yard’s design work and introduced him to New York’s wealthiest families, including the Vanderbilts, the DuPonts and the Woolworths. During the 1920s and 1930s, Yard worked with fancy-cut diamonds and coloured stones to create strikingly elegant designs. Lot 237 is a wonderful example of this motif. The rubies mounted in the double-clip brooch are a combination of traditional and non-traditional cuts. Against a background of old and baguette-cut diamonds, the rubies are equally bold and graceful.