"Thief of Bagdad" Jewelry, ca. 1940
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GUEST:
It's called "The Thief of Bagdad" jewelry, and it is somehow connected with-- I think it was a late-1930s movie, "The Thief of Bagdad." It was directed by Alexander Korda, and I've tried doing some research on it, but I keep getting contradicting information.
APPRAISER:
Alexander Korda was the director of "The Thief of Bagdad" in 1940, but Alexander Korda had nothing to do with this jewelry. It was licensed to a company called Rice-Weiner that started production in about 1938.
GUEST:
Okay.
APPRAISER:
And so what the Alexander Korda signature is, is the licensing agreement with this company. When we look at the signature, Alexander Korda, it's a "Thief of Bagdad." It was produced during World War II. Previously, rhinestone jewelry had a lot of stones. During the Art Deco, they were paved with rhinestones. But you'll notice this jewelry has very few stones because we were at war. So we've got cabochon stones, we've got some pointed-back stones, pearl stones, and we've got a lot of intricate metalwork. Our stones came from Czechoslovakia and Austria, mostly, so we had to use what was in our back storeroom.
GUEST:
Oh, yeah.
APPRAISER:
We couldn't get rhinestones. And we used older-style stones for jewelry in the '40s that we would have used for jewelry from the '20s and '30s. The '40s style carries through with the brass chain, and they're wonderfully produced. Now, have you got any idea what they're worth?
GUEST:
Most of what I've been able to find have been referring to pins and some pendant pieces, so I really have no idea.
APPRAISER:
Pins and pendants are more frequently found, and I've never seen a pair of earrings, ever. So that's what you've got to search for, is earrings.
GUEST:
Okay.
APPRAISER:
But this necklace is worth about $200 on today's market.
GUEST:
Okay.
APPRAISER:
This necklet is worth about $100. And the bracelet's also worth about $100.
GUEST:
Oh, okay.
APPRAISER:
So about $400.
GUEST:
All right.
APPRAISER:
Thank you so much for bringing them in.
GUEST:
Thank you, I finally learned something-- I love it.
APPRAISER:
Yes, you did!
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