This diamond necklace which was once worn by former French Queen Marie Antoinette’s exquisite diamond necklace is set for auction in November. The firm Sotheby’s announced on Monday. The necklace is composed of something around 500 diamonds and will cost around $1.8-$2.8 million.
The auction event will be held on the 11th of November in Geneva but the online bid will run from 25th of October. Such a necklace also belongs to a special collection and will be part of “Royal & Noble Jewels” sale.
The necklace, which has been privately owned and mostly in Asia, will now be shown in public for the first time in 50 years. It is on view in London now, and subsequently in Hong Kong, New York, and Taiwan.
Sotheby’s jewelry department chairman Andres White Correal spoke about the necklace’s peculiarity: “It’s an amazing discovery because normally there were no whole jewels from the 18th century as they were taken to pieces for, to change in fashion. So, having a complete element of such importance from the Georgians period with such a history and this amount of carats… is absolutely fabulous.”
It features three rows of diamonds and diamond tassels at each end. This piece was in the possession of Anglo Welsh aristocrats, the Marquesses Of Anglesey. This necklace was said to have been worn during the coronation of King George VI in 1937 and Queen Elizabeth II in 1953.
It has been reported that some of the stones might have been used in the Necklace Affair which revolved and ruined Marie Antoinette’s name and the whole France suffered a revolution due to this chaos.
It has been reported that the Necklace’s stones were sourced from India’s famed Golconda mines which are reputed for producing outstanding and brilliant diamonds – Sotheby’s. The necklace was possibly made for the royal family, AFP says.
