Mary Tudor pearl will be showcased in Masterpiece London 2013

Masterpiece London 2013 welcomes more than twenty brand-new exhibitors to the fair this year.

From 27 June to 3 July 2013 in the magnificent purpose-built pavilion on the South Grounds of The Royal Medical hospital Chelsea, with over one hundred and fifty recognized dealerships in art and antiques on the international stage and the most discussed exhibit a phenomenal jewel from European Royal history - The Mary Tudor Pearl. Amazing pearl will be showcased by jewellers Symbolic & Chase.

 The Renaissance pearl surfaced in 2004 when it was acquired, having been lost since the late 16th century, and can be traced back to 1526. It determines 258.12 grains (64.5 carats, 69.8 carats with its diamond cap) making it the third biggest well-formed natural pearl documented today.

Between 1526 and 1539 the pearl became part of the superior jewellery collection of the Empress Isabella of Portugal (1503-1539). When the Empress died in 1539 the pearl was acquired by her daughter, Juana of Austria (1535-1573) and ultimately became part of the dowry for Mary Tudor (1516-1558), after whom the pearl has actually been christened, when she wed Felipe II of Spain.

The exceptional asymmetrical teardrop-shaped pearl was much admired and is featured in Royal portrait of Mary Tudor, namely 'Mary Tudor, Queen of England', by Anthonis Mor and 'Queen Mary I' by Hans Eworth. A comparable painting by Hans Eworth of Queen Mary I likewise hangs at the National Portrait Gallery.

Following its debut at Masterpiece London the pearl will be exhibited at the V&A Gallery Pearls Exhibit which will run from 21 September 2013 to 19 January 2014.

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Coca Cola top secret recipe on eBay for 15 million

An American antiques dealer claims to have stumbled across a 70-year-old initial top-secret recipe for Coca-Cola and is now selling the formula on-line for a substantial $15 million.

Cliff Kluge stated he found the 1943 formula in a box of personal papers and letters he bought from the estate of a chemist in his home town of Georgia.

The recipe for Coca-Cola, naturally, is a securely concealed - and has been since the 19th century. Cliff Kluge said that Coca-Cola authorities informed him they would call him back in 7-10 days. They have not called him.

He is convinced it is the genuine thing and has posted the paper on eBay for a starting rate of $5million or a 'buy now' cost of $15million. So far, there have been no bids.

For Mr Kluge, it's not always about the money however the 'enjoyment' of discovering exactly what he believes is an unseen treasure. Since the business was having trouble getting everything needed during the war, he believes that Coca-Cola may have sent out the ingredient listing to the pharmacist.

The 19th century recipe for the fizzy drink is a snugly hidden and is securely tucked away in a vault at the World of Coca-Cola in Atlanta. Mr Kluge's recipe is very similar to one the US radio program This American Life published two years ago.

Ted Ryan, the archivist for Coca-Cola informed Atlanta's WXIA station that he thinks the recipe is a formula for a 'cola' type drink however not Coca-Cola.

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Lost 17 century paintings by Mary Beale found in Paris shop

The paintings, painted in around 1660 by Mary Beale, which had been "lost" for centuries, were rediscovered in a Paris antiques shop where they lay unnoticed.

James Mulraine, the dealer and art historian who detected them, purchased the paintings and brought them back to Britain.

The oil on paper works, painted some years before Beale became popular painter, reveal her son Bartholomew as a young boy and have actually been verified by specialists as genuine.

Mary Beale, who lived from 1633 to 1699, is known to be Britain's first professional female artist, establishing an effective studio with her civil servant husband and taking commissions for pictures. The subject of the paintings, one of Beale's two sons, later on went on to work as an assistant in her gallery.

They are among around 500 works to go on show at the gallery from Could 14, as part of the BP Walk Through of British Art exhibit. Site visitors to the London gallery will now see the collection, dating from the 1500s to today day, organized in chronological order.

Tate Britain has likewise opened brand-new permanent galleries committed to 2 British artists, William Blake and Henry Moore. The gallery includes works by artists consisting of Francis Bacon, John Constable, William Hogarth, Thomas Gainsborough, George Stubbs, JMW Turner, Stanley Spencer, LS Lowry, John Everett Millais, Bridget Riley, Damien Hirst, David Hockney, and Rachel Whiteread.

Together with the chronological sequence of works, Tate Britain is likewise putting on a collection of detailed displays on topics such as John Constable's The Cornfield.

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William De Morgan turned tile making into an art

William De Morgan developed tile making into an art, and try out many types of glazes and firing methods.

He was drawn to creating images of animals, birds, plants and fish. Numerous of his designs comprised multi tile decorative panels, still recreated and on sale today.

William de Morgan was a lifelong friend of William Morris, developing designs in ceramics, glass and furniture for Morris and Co, William Morris' company.

Early on in his occupation De Morgan utilized blank commercial tiles to which he added his own designs. In the future he established his own high quality tile which was highly resistant to moisture and better than the blank commercial tiles he had actually been using.

He likewise established cutting-edge glazes, approaches of shooting and pattern transfer approaches. As well as dealing with tiles, he also bought blank vases and bowls from Wedgwood and others and added his own designs to these. These are highly valued and now worth a great deal of money in the antiques market.

De Morgan appreciated Eastern tiles both from a design, color and glazing viewpoint. He embraced an Eastern color scheme of deep vivid colors and produced sensational designs of nearly mythical animals mixed with geometric designs within lustruously glazed tiles.

De Morgans ceramic works never succeeded commercially and was financially aided by his wife Evelyn De Morgan and in the end was taken over by a few of his painting staff. He then turned his hand to writing, at which he was considerably more successful, including the novels Joseph Vance, An Affair of Dishonour and Alice-for-Short, a genre referred to as Victorian and suburban.

Collections of De Morgan's design work exists in many museums, consisting of the Victoria and Albert Museum, and the William Morris Gallery in London, the Birmingham Gallery and Art Gallery. A variety of historic homes in the UK commissioned and continue to show de Morgans work.

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Collecting emeralds for fun and profit

Collectors are captivated with emerald. This uncommon and unique gem is also referred to as "green fire". Colombia is the major source of emerald.

This South American country is one of the most unsafe and unsteady locations worldwide. The two most famous mining areas are Muzo and Chivor. Muzo is found 100 kilometers north of Bogota. The district is hot and damp, and it regularly rains. Muzo and Cosquez are the major mines right here. Emeralds are found in black calcium-rich shale. Most of the stones from these mines are heavily included.

Chivor, which is northeast of Bogota, is in a rugged, virtually inaccessible topography with thick, forest plants. The two significant mines of this area are Chivor and Gachala. Chivor mine sits 2300 meters above sea level on a mountainside. Chivor was initially mined by the Chibcha Indians and emerald was traded from the Andes to Mexico until the mine was lost. Chivor was found in 1896. In this area the rock is black shale and sandstone.

Which mine is much better for collectors? The terms Muzo and Chivor are frequently made use of in the trade, not a lot to identify the specific source of a gem, but rather to to explain the qualities of the emerald. "Muzo" is made use of to describe a warm, grass-green emerald, with yellow being the secondary color. "Chivor" stones resemble the pine trees of Washington state, with blue being the secondary color. Particular collectors and dealers argue about which color is the best, however it is truly an issue of personal choice. In top colors both types of these emeralds are extremely desirable and pricey.

Emeralds are very consisted of compared to most gems. Inclusions that would not be acceptable in ruby and sapphire are acceptable in emerald. The conclusive identifier for Colombian emerald is the three-phase addition; strong, liquid, and gas. Despite the fact that the gem is normally mined with eye-visible introductions (even at the collector level), emerald is the most popular colored gem in America.

Most likely 98 % of all emerald found would be graded Heavily Included. A lot of collectors seek strictly Colombian emeralds. They spend decades buying the finest green and cleanest stones available.

Occasionally, Brazilian and African emeralds are found that look exactly like Colombian emerald. If you are an emerald connoisseur, these gems make sense to collect. You can purchase African emerald if you have a moderate budget. As a basic guideline these gems are cleaner than Colombian emeralds however have a touch of black and gray colors. They trade at a 50 % price cut to Colombian stones. If you are on a restricted budget, sometimes Brazil produces nice stones at about 1/2 the cost of Colombians. As a basic policy, Brazilian emeralds are green/black in appearance.

Commercial quality Colombian emeralds can easily range from $500-$2500 per carat for one carat stones. High precious jewelry quality ranges from $2500-$5000 per carat. Gem, one carat emeralds range between $5000-$10,000 per carat. The finest color, 4 carat or bigger Colombian emeralds can easy bring $20,000 per carat. A 10 carat, gem emerald can exceed $50,000 per carat. Add 50-100 % to these figures if an emerald is AGL certified.

Around 99 % of all emeralds are treated. The same as the heating of ruby and sapphire, this is completely appropriate. Emeralds have been oiled for centuries. Clear oil is forced into surface-breaking additions, consequently reducing the presence of additions. Oiled stones have the tendency to fluoresce a pale yellow. A new therapy for emeralds is opticon. Some dealers contend opticoned emeralds have a better finish, are more long lasting, and the therapy is long-lasting. Opticoning uses the exact same theory as oil, but introductions are filled with a thick epoxy instead of oil. The stones are sealed with a thin coat. A brand new treatment was introduced in 1997 called Gematrat. They state that their filler "de-emphasizes" the exposure of fractures however does not hide them. Suffice to state, if you collect emeralds, you need to understand they are most likely dealt with in some fashion.

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Stone step from Buddhist temple sold in London for 553,250 pounds

An ancient Buddhist artifact which was being used as a doorstep at the residence of Mike and Bronwyn Hickmott in Devon and was valued at £30,000 has actually been sold for more than £500,000.

An expert identified the one tonne stone in a photograph and later verified it was actually a Buddhist temple step - up to 1,300 years old. The pre-Hindu granite step, Sandakada pahana, is similar to those found in the ancient city of Anuradhapura in Sri Lanka.

It includes a curved procession of animals including lions, horses, birds, elephants and cows. The enormously heavy step is among just six examples known to date from this period, making this latest discovery the seventh.

The temple step is a feature unique to Sinhalese architecture in Sri Lanka. The granite relic was given to Bronwen Hickmott's parents by a tea planter who went back to Britain from Sri Lanka in the 1950s. She acquired the 2.4metre-long stone from her mother and father and started using it as a doorstep at her home in Exeter, Devon - affectionately calling it "the pebble".

It was put up for auction with a pre-sale quote of £30,000 to £50,000, however sold for over 10 times as much - £553,250 as part of the 'Indian and Islamic Sale' of the international auction house Bonhams. There were at least 8 telephone bidders and three in the saleroom in London fighting it out for the rare artifact.

Hickmott stated she was feeling "over the moon" at the sale.

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