The first sapphires from the rugged Himalayan mountains of Kashmir were found by accident. Near the end of the 19th century, a group of ragged travelers and their mule caravan stumbled upon a cluster of blue stones uncovered by a landslide. When the group arrived in Delhi, they traded the stones for salt. Once the stones were discovered to be sapphire, they quickly changed hands for a small fortune. But as soon as the ruling Maharajah discovered that such gems were found on his land, he demanded each transaction be undone and the stunning sapphires be returned. That first discovery set into motion an intense period of mining that lasted only a handful of decades. In that time, Kashmir sapphires became considered the ultimate example of the brilliant blue gemstone.

Today, rare Kashmir sapphires are outrageously expensive and virtually unobtainable. But the world's love affair with the beautiful blue gem continues. We collected 22 carats of smooth, blue sapphire beads for this exquisite necklace and matching earrings. Each elegant blue bead is unique in both size and color, ranging from translucent to nearly opaque and links together with delicate, hand-twisted 14K yellow gold. The 18"  necklace fastens with a spring ring clasp. The post-back earrings feature five sapphire beads each and dangle approximately 1-1/2". No rock climbing required.