Featured From Russia With Love

I received this beautiful ring from a very old Ukrainian patient that I was working with as a "parting gift". She told me it was very special and that she had had it for a while. That is the entire story. I just recently found a loupe a friend had gifted me and was finally able to make out the marks...unfortunately, I cannot see them well enough to photograph. So, I have drawn on paper what I believe I am seeing and hoping for the best from you.

 

Looks like it's soviet 14K (585) and that looks very much like a ruby , probably synthetic but so what, check if a ruby with a blacklight. If a ruby you'll know right away!

As your friend was Ukrenska I'd say the K next to the soviet star logo stands for the Kiev workshop

 

All rubies fluoresce under UV light,natural and synthetic. https://www.gemsociety.org/article/natural-rubies-fluoresce/

 

Mozambique Tourmaline? I just didn't know.

How old does it appear to be?

 

Yeah, I know that, so what? still a ruby, right? like uh..not something else

I've had quite a few rubies and this sure looks like one.

 

ITA on the gold mark. The stone would take a good gemologist to figure out for certain. I'd guess synthetic ruby, but get it under a fluorescent light and then take it outside. See if it looks red in one and green in the other. With a Russian ring I'd be wondering about synthetic alexandrite. (or if you're blindingly lucky the real thing ... but file that under "good gemologist")

(or red and purple or red and blue. I've heard of synthetics working in different combinations.)

 

blacklight it

 

It is lovely, flipper, such a nice gift.
The mark was introduced in 1958. The K mark could be Odessa, as it was in the pre-Soviet time. Not all assay offices have a letter corresponding with the first letter of the city. For instance I have a Soviet period gold ring with the mark below, which is the pre-Soviet, and possibly Soviet, mark for Moscow:

Since it is Russian, I expect this to be a Russian stone. They have so many gemstones of their own. I would first check if it is an alexandrite. They also have topazes of this colour.

 

I think you'll find that post 1958, the non-cursive K mark is indeed Kiev, also sort of logical as owner was from the Ukraine. Not impossible that the ring traveled across the steppes, but Odessa is just about as far away as possible from Kiev.

 

Not such a strange notion, blooey, you do realize Odessa is actually in Ukraine? Not that all jewellery in Ukraine was necessarily made in Ukraine of course. You may think it is very far from Kiev, that is relative of course, some people think 10k is far away. To the Ukrainians of Odessa it is home, in Ukraine.
It is the main Ukrainian port on the Black Sea, Russian revolution, featured in the Eisenstein movie, etc, etc.
Also the port where many of the gemstones from the Caucasus entered Ukraine, one of the reasons why there are so many gold- and silversmiths in Odessa.

I don't know if the K mark on flipper's ring is Odessa, I just said it is a possibility, since it was up to 1958, just like the Moscow mark on my Soviet era ring was the same as the pre-1958 mark.
And since Odessa is one of the main cities of Ukraine.

Odessa Ukraine, that is, not Odessa Texas.

 

I guess I was thinking Vladivostok, oh well! Still think it's the Kiev mark though.

 

Don't worry, I know my Odessa from my Vladivostok.

 

...but not your Odessa from Kiev ..awwww.... too bad

 

Wow!

Leslie

 

What a gorgeous ring Flipper