Rare jewelry that once belong to to Marie Antoinette and has n’t been seen in populace for 200 years will be head to the auction block this fall , according toThe Adventurine .
A diamond parure ( jewellery set ) , three - strand pearl necklace , and other gems that once adorned the last queen of France will be sold on November 12 in Geneva , Switzerland , as part ofSotheby’s"Royal Jewels from the Bourbon - Parma Family " auction sale . The household in interrogation is related by blood to some of Europe ’s most important rulers , including former kings of France and Spain and emperors of Austria .
Although Marie Antoinette was known for her opulent fashion choices , her precious stone have scarcely been seen since the French Revolution , The Adventurine report . The Smithsonian owns a pair of earrings that are believed to contain infield from the poof ’s collection , and a rhomb necklace that appeared at a Christie ’s auction bridge in 1971 " has n’t been construe since . " The jewellery powder store notes that many of Marie Antoinette ’s jewels were dismantled , but a few — like the ones featured in this latest collection — managed to make it .
fit in to Sotheby ’s , Marie Antoinette order all her jewel in a wooden chest in March 1791 and shipped them off to her nephew , the Austrian Emperor , for safekeeping [ PDF ] . That following twelvemonth , the royal kin was imprisoned , and in 1793 Marie Antoinette and King Louis XVII were fulfill by closure by compartment . Their onlysurviving child , Marie Thérèse de France , retrieve the jewel and after passed them along to her niece , since she had no small fry of her own . They ultimately ended up with Robert I , the last rein Duke of Parma in Italy .
The most valuable piece , a off-white pendant featuring a bow made of diamonds , is expected to fetch between $ 1 million and $ 2 million , consort to the auction star sign ’s estimates . In the previous 18th century , pearls were just as coveted as diamonds because of their rarity . Marie Antoinette , of course , bear them often .
" It is one of the most significant royal jewelry collection ever to look on the market and each and every gem is absolutely interpenetrate with story , " Daniela Mascetti , of Sotheby ’s European jewellery division , said in a instruction .
[ h / tThe Adventurine ]
