Four examples of the “King’s Bling”—jewelry owned by the late rock-and-roll icon Elvis Presley—were recently put up for sale by RR Auction, though only two of them drew bidders who paid enough to make them their little good luck charm.
A bidder paid $12,251 for the top jewelry item, a 14k gold Baume & Mercier watch (pictured, right) that Elvis gave to his Las Vegas musical director Bobby Morris in the summer of 1969. Engraved on the caseback is “To Bobby, from Squirrly E. P.” The watch came with a letter of provenance from Morris.
A pair of gold-backed cufflinks that Presley left at the home of his personal physician Elias Ghanem, each inset with a green gem, fetched $2,701. That item brought in less than one of the auction’s more eyebrow-raising items, an empty prescription pill bottle made out to the singer for the stimulant Dexedrine, which fetched $4,166.
The other two jewelry items may be marked return to sender, including a 14k yellow gold ring in the shape of a “10”—with four inlaid diamonds that form the “1” and a black sapphire is the “0″—that failed to meet its reserve price. So did a 14k yellow gold 0.57 ct. F VS1 diamond ring Presley gave to a high roller at the Sands Hotel and Casino in the early 1970s.
“The auction house will continue to work with interested parties to reach a sale,” says spokesperso, Mike Graff.
RR Auctions executive vice president Bobby Livingston tells JCK that, even though Presley’s heyday was over 50 years ago, his items still attract interest at auctions.
“There is still enthusiastic bidding on a lot of the items,” he says. “Prices may not be as strong on Elvis items as those of collectibles for groups like the Beatles, but they are still very strong. People still remember him. He’s an immortal.”
Boston-based RR Auction has offered many jewelry collectibles associated with notable figures of the past, including jewelry that belonged to Al Capone and Bonnie and Clyde, a Rolex from President Dwight D. Eisenhower, and a Bulova chronograph worn on the moon.
(Images courtesy of RR Auction)
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