During Sotheby’s upcoming Royal & Noble Jewels live sale (on Nov. 11 in Geneva and Oct. 25 via online bidding), the auction house is offering one particularly rare and historic 18th-century jewel: a necklace with approximately 300 cts. t.w. of diamonds once belonging to French queen Marie Antoinette. Making its first public appearance in 50 years, the piece is expected to fetch $1.8 to $2.8 million (CHF 1,600,000 to 2,400,000).
Beyond its overt beauty, this jewel is believed to be connected to a particularly notable historical event, the infamous “Affair of the Necklace”—the scandal that shook the French monarchy and played a role in the downfall of Marie Antoinette. The affair involved a diamond necklace originally commissioned for Louis XV’s mistress but later linked to the queen through a fraudulent scheme. The necklace became a symbol of the monarchy’s excess and fueled public outrage against Marie Antoinette, contributing to the French Revolution.
The diamonds in this jewel are thought to have originated from the famous necklace at the center of this scandal. Crafted in the decade before the revolution, this piece likely adorned royalty or aristocrats, with its opulent design reflecting the grandeur of the time. Its connection to such a pivotal moment in history makes it an even more significant treasure.
“This rare and important diamond jewel is a sublime survivor from the opulent court life of the Georgian era, defined by its unrivaled pomp and splendor; it is arguably one of the most magnificent and intact Georgian jewels in private hands,” said Andres White Correal, Sotheby’s chairman of jewelry in Europe and the Middle East and head of noble jewels, in a statement. “When compared to other surviving Imperial and Royal jewels from the same period, this necklace stands head and shoulders above these examples; it is a fortune in diamonds, and also a masterclass in exquisite design, workmanship, and technical innovation for the period. The jewel is as relevant, alluring, and appealing today as when it was made over two centuries ago. It is the ne plus ultra of 18th-century jewelry design.”
(Photos courtesy of Sotheby’s)
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