“Irving Berlin has no place in American music, he is American music.” This statement by Jerome Kern (1885-1945), a notable composer of the early twentieth century, best encapsulates Irving Berlin’s dynamic career as a songwriter and foretells his lasting mark on American culture and society.

Israel Beilin, later known as Irving Berlin, was born in Russia in 1888. He immigrated to the United States with his family as a child to escape religious persecution. Berlin taught himself to play piano and began writing songs in his teens. He worked on the streets selling newspapers and singing for change. In 1907, he wrote his first published song, Marie from Sunny Italy where the sheet music incorrectly listed his name as “I. Berlin,” a name he would keep for the rest of his life. Despite having little formal musical training and the inability to read music, he went on to compose classics such as “God Bless America,” “White Christmas,” and “There's No Business Like Show Business.” His career spanned over the next five decades, during which he wrote for Broadway musicals, Hollywood films, and patriotic causes.

Irving Berlin met his wife, Ellin Mackay, at a dinner party in 1925. She was the daughter of Clarence Mackay, the president of the American Post and Telegraph Company and granddaughter of John Mackay, one of the discoverers of the famous Comstock Lode of silver in Nevada. Mackay was one of New York’s most celebrated debutantes. The society heiress took on a career of writing and was a prolific short-story writer and novelist in her own right. Throughout her life, she contributed stories to the Saturday Evening Post, The Ladies’ Home Journal, The New Yorker and many other popular magazines.

During World War I and World War II, Berlin’s songs boosted morale and brought comfort to troops and civilians alike. His work is notable for its reflection of American ideals, immigrant experiences, and national identity. “God Bless America,” originally written during World War I and revised in 1938, became an unofficial national anthem for the United States, often performed at sporting and patriotic events. The song remains an important fixture of American society and much like its composer, is a staple of American culture. Irving and Ellin Berlin’s patriotism is further exemplified by The God Bless America Fund. Established by the Berlins in 1940, the fund directs proceeds from Berlin’s patriotic songs and distributes funding to the Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts. In further recognition for contributions to his country, Berlin was presented with the Army’s Medal of Merit from President Truman in 1945, a Congressional Gold Medal for “God Bless America” from President Eisenhower in 1954 and the Freedom Medal from President Ford in 1977. In 2002, the U.S. Army base at Fort Belvoir, Virginia named the Army Entertainment Division (AED) World Headquarters “The Irving Berlin Center” in his honor. Additionally, that year he was commemorated on a U.S. postage stamp.

In 1962, Berlin retired, he and Ellin stepped back from public life, spending much of their time in the Catskill Mountains. Ellin Berlin died on July 29, 1988, and Irving Berlin died the following year on September 22, 1989 at the age of 101. During their 62-year marriage, Irving Berlin gave Ellin gifts of exquisite jewels as expressions of their eternal love for one another. In 2018, Christie’s had the honor to present “The Berlin Ruby,” a Tiffany & Co. ruby and diamond ring, a gift from Irving to Ellin for their 40th wedding anniversary, which sold for $1,152,500.

Christie’s is proud to present a personal treasure formerly from the Collection of Irving Berlin – this time, a gem-set ring of his own. This sapphire ring can be seen in many photographs of this great icon while composing and playing the piano.