A ring in the shape of a deer by one of the most sought-after – but-under-the-radar – jewellers of the 20th century, is expected to make £1,500 at Hansons Auctioneers auction on April 2.
The silver ring is the work of the enigmatic Polish-born maker Mosheh Oved (1885-1958) who, after emigrating to the UK in 1902, abandoned plans to become a rabbi to train as an East End watchmaker.
It was bought by for the current vendor’s wife in the 1960s during a “hippy phase”.
He said: “I thought it would be a great toe ring, She wore it as much as she could, suffering the pain for the look.”
Little did he know the background of the anthropomorphic jewellery and the history of its famous maker – a poet and mystic who once rubbed shoulders with the artistic elite of the day – including the sculptor, Jacob Epstein.
In the 1920s Oved married the self-taught jewellery designer Gwendoline Rendell (1900–1983) who worked under the name Miss Rendle but took the name Sah Oved after converting to Judaism.
Just before WWII the pair opened the shop Cameo Corner at 26 Museum Street, near the British Museum in Bloomsbury.
More artistic salon than store, it soon became the haunt of everyone from royalty to the nearby Bohemian set.
Advertisements referred to the shop being Dealer in Antiques to HM Queen Mary, with a guidebook calling it “one of the most interesting in London, with an immense selection of various things from a silver hat pin to a gem-studded ancient Russian samovar.”
Hansons Auctioneers’ jewellery specialist, Helen Smith, said: “Oved developed a name as a rather flamboyant seller of rare and unusual jewellery, often dressing in a long velvet robe and wearing a large amethyst pendant.”
Before long the dealer turned jeweller.
Helen Smith continued said: “Anecdotally Oved’s own jewellery output began during the Blitz. He and his wife were sheltering in the shop basement and, to stop his hands shaking with fear, his wife suggested he made wax models of rings.”
His first ring was styled in the shape of a lamb, with the range soon expanding to include a of horses, donkeys, swans and parrots and birds.
Helen Smith, herself a goldsmith, continued: “I love the way the creatures wrap around the finger as seen with the deer ring we have in our fine art sale. And, because the ring has a flat base, it will stand alone in its own right, as a miniature sculpture.”
His work, in both silver and gold, is unsigned, but can include inscriptions on the base in both Hebrew and English ranging from song lyrics to Biblical verses.
Helen continued: “As an animal lover I would love to own a collection of these and have my own menagerie. As a goldsmith myself I appreciate the skill involved in carving the wax for these miniature creations.”
In 1925 Oved’s autobiography Visions and Jewels was published, a year later Jacob Epstein cast his bust in bronze which is now on display at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem.
Oved died in 1958 aged 73 with Cameo Corner closing in the same year.
Helen Smith said: “In a remarkable life it is for his rings that we most remember Moshe Oved today and it is a privilege to be selling his wonderful ring.”
The ring has an estimate of £1,000-£1,500 at Hansons Auctioneers’ fine art sale in its Etwallsaleroom on April 2.
Auction Details
Auction: The Derbyshire Spring Fine Art Auction to include: A single owner collection of works by John Hardman & Co.
Auction date: 2nd April 2026 | 10am
Location: Hansons’ Derbyshire Saleroom
Auction contact: [email protected]
Catalogue/bidding: www.hansonslive.co.uk | www.the-saleroom.com
