Michael Larsen

Michael Larsen is the Senior Jewelry Specialist at Bonhams in Los Angeles. He began working at the company from 2000 to 2002, and resumed his position there in 2004. His responsibilities include jewelry, gem and watch appraising, as well as contributing to fine jewelry and timepiece auctions throughout the US.

Larsen has more than two decades of experience in the jewelry industry, including special expertise in appraising, manufacturing and custom design, as well as an extensive understanding of watches and timepieces. He is both a Graduate Gemologist and a Graduate Jeweler from the Gemological Institute of America. He was awarded the title of Certified Gemologist Appraiser, which he earned from the American Gemological Society in 1997.

Larsen joined Bonhams after working for Philip Press, an upscale manufacturer and retailer based in Los Angeles. Before that, from 1995 to 1999, he was employed by Altobelli Jewelers in North Hollywood, Calif., where he directed extensive appraisal and gemological duties for both vendors and private parties.

Larsen's education includes studies in Geology and Geography at the University of Colorado, Boulder.

Outside of Bonhams, Larsen presided as President and Vice President for the GIA Alumni Association, Los Angeles Chapter, from 1994 to 1996. Currently, he lectures for cultural and member organizations on jewelry, jewelry history and fashion, and devotes his personal efforts as well as lecture proceeds to the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research and Cure.