On the Road — The Original Miami Beach Antique Show

We recently visited the 2023 edition of the Original Miami Beach Antique Show, held at the city’s Convention Center. More than 600 national and international vendors offered everything under the sun, from antiques and art to vintage fashion and home furnishings.

However, most of the show was jewelry. Lots of diamond jewelry—even just stones—plus costume jewelry from Chanel, Tiffany & Co. and Cartier. There were many Van Cleef & Arpels four-leaf clover-inspired necklaces, earrings and bracelets; they are very popular right now. We were also surprised to see so much silver and at very high prices—beautiful plates, cutlery sets, huge urns, vases and serving pieces.

A few dealers were selling high-end handbags. The majority were Hermès Birkin, Chanel and Louis Vuitton, including many Vuitton trunks.

There were many pieces of Asian art furniture and vases. We also saw ornate French furniture and chandeliers, as well as big sculptures and antique paintings with big gilt frames. There didn’t appear to be much modern furniture on display.

But this is our favorite moment from the show. Two booths were selling trays of silver items and scraps, sold by weight. My son (and fellow Kovels correspondent!), Adrian, is very interested in gems. He picked a pendant for $4, and spotted a pavé diamond ring which was selling for $20. The booth attendant looked at the ring and quickly told Adrian that he could put the ring on hold so he could look around the show and see if he wanted something better. But Adrian insisted on buying that ring. The attendant continued trying to talk him out of it, but Adrian paid his $20 and got the prize he wanted. I haven’t had the ring examined yet to check the quality of the metal and if the diamonds are real to know how valuable the ring truly is. But one thing is for sure: It’s worth more than $20.

So you never know what bargains you might find, no matter where you are!

The Original Miami Beach Antique Show featured more than 600 vendors. We
had plenty to see.

 

Adrian and his prize $20 diamond ring. Score!

 

This eye-catching glass vase by Angelo Ballarin with a mosaic design was priced at $1,500.

 

A pottery vase by Paul Dachsel, 1906–1907, with an asking price of $5,500.

 

An Indo-Portuguese inlaid cabinet. We were impressed!

 

A pair of Italian modern chairs that was selling for a cool $20,500.

 

A small sampling of the enormous amount of silver for sale. It was everywhere.

 

The skull of an extremely rare South African sable antelope, mounted by the famous London designer Anthony Redmill in the 1970s. Price: $6,500.