Royal and Noble Jewels – The Legacy Continues
Sotheby's brings together rare and beautiful items that tell unique stories and are forever etched in history and memory. Throughout centuries, the nobility and royalty have played a leading role in artistic patronage and the emergence of rich collections of exquisite artwork and rare jewellery.
Gemstones and jewels have long symbolised power and wealth among royal houses worldwide. The earliest European crown, the Iron Crown of Lombardy, was crafted as early as the sixth century. By the mid-sixteenth century, gemstones had become a significant feature of Europe’s royal treasuries. The height of European royal jewellery collections was reached in the mid-eighteenth century, fueled by the influx of diamonds from newly discovered sources in Brazil, alongside the continued flow of emeralds from Colombia.
Fascinating pieces of furniture, art, paintings, and jewels often came together under Sotheby’s auction hammer with collections from the most illustrious courts during the turn of the century. Some of the greatest English noble country houses, and Europe's most powerful ruling families, provided evidence of their preferences, and distinctive styles, revealed in their love of jewels, personal treasures, pearls, and diamonds – all of which survived the tumults of history, and continue to captivate the interest of collectors around the world, today.
From intricate 19th-century micro and mosaic work to Renaissance tapestries and dazzling jewels with noble and royal provenance, these precious pieces have traversed the world over before arriving inside Sotheby’s auction house where the hammer fell once again and joined them with new discerning collectors.
Royal & Noble Jewels Exhibition Tour
This October, Sotheby’s magnificent Royal & Noble Jewels Highlights tour arrives in Dubai to dazzle audiences with pieces of royal and noble provenance. Prior to anchoring Dubai, the exhibition will have travelled across cities like New York and Hong Kong, amongst others, in early October. The tour will finally conclude in Geneva, ahead of Sotheby’s sale auction on the 11th of November. The exhibition will showcase some of the most spectacular and historically significant jewels from various aristocratic houses, an event that continues to reinforce Sotheby's legacy of offering highly important Royal collections as illustrated by the Bourbon-Parma sales in November 2018.
Sotheby's Bourbon-Parma Family Jewels Auction yielded $53.1 million thanks to Queen Marie-Antoinette's jewels. One piece alone – a special pearl owned by the Queen – broke the world record with a natural pearl sold at auction for $36.2 million.
It is believed that before her capture and execution, Marie Antoinette carefully wrapped her precious jewels – pearls, diamonds, and rubies – in cotton and sent them in a trunk to Brussels. From there, the jewels made their way to Vienna, where the Austrian emperor, Marie Antoinette’s nephew, safeguarded them. In 1795, he returned the collection to the queen’s daughter, Madame Royale. The pieces later became part of the Bourbon Parma family’s collection, which eventually brought them to auction at Sotheby’s.
This year’s auction sale in Geneva will most likely replicate previous records attained by Sotheby’s, with the entire auction expected to draw in high figures, in particular, due to a rare and highly Important 18th-century jewel formerly in the collection of the Marquess of Anglesey.
Rounding off the auction is an extensive selection of jewellery from a noble collection that brings together a dazzling ensemble of pieces from the 19th century onwards.
Rare and Highly Important 18th-Century Jewel takes centre stage at Sotheby's Royal & Noble Jewels Live Auction in Geneva.
One of the rarest diamond necklaces ever to come to auction, this superbly flawless late 18th-century piece weighs approximately 300 carats and is making its first public appearance in fifty years. Formerly part of the Collection of the Marquess of Anglesey, the necklace is expected to fetch an estimated $2,587,000.
Although its exact origins remain a mystery, the necklace is believed to have been crafted just before the French Revolution. In 1937, Marjorie Paget, Marchioness of Anglesey, wore the piece to the coronation of King George VI, a moment immortalised in a portrait by famous photographer Cecil Beaton. Sixteen years later, in 1953, her daughter-in-law donned the same heirloom jewels for the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II.
The necklace features a pair of old cushion-shaped diamond tassels, connected by three rows of collet-set old cushion-shaped and circular-cut diamonds, with a total length of approximately 670mm. This rare and historic piece will be on display in Dubai from the 28th to the 30th of October, as part of the global tour and ahead of the Royal and Noble Jewels live auction at Sotheby’s Geneva on 11 November.
Previously Exhibited
In 1959, this remarkable jewel was on display in London as part of The Ageless Diamond Loan exhibition, alongside some of the most renowned royal and aristocratic diamond pieces, including the celebrated Williamson Pink Diamond and the brooch adorned with the Cullinan III and IV diamonds from the collection of Queen Elizabeth II.
In 1979, the jewel was again featured, this time in the American Museum of Natural History’s Bicentennial Exhibition. At the time, stories circulated which claimed that the piece had been crafted in 1776 by Collingwood Jeweller and that it was a gift from George III to the Duchess of Marlborough.
Final Note
Adorning elegant evening gowns of queens and distinguished ladies inside astonishing mansions, palaces, and castles, these jewels have a story to tell, reflect a lifestyle, and encapsulate a bygone era. As these historical treasures go under the hammer, they will undoubtedly attract worldwide attention and exceptional prices. For hundreds of years, Sotheby’s has had the honour of selling some of the most storied and exquisite jewels. Taking part in the upcoming Dubai exhibition will place you at the centre of the unique stories behind these rare jewel pieces and their creation.
