Historic 35-carat ‘Beau Sancy’ diamond sells for $9.7 million
19, May, NYDaily news.com
A centuries-old diamond passed down through generations of European
royalty fetched nine million Swiss francs ($9.7 million) at auction in
Geneva on Tuesday.The 35-carat "Beau Sancy" diamond was worn by Marie de
Medici, Queen consort of Henry IV, at her coronation in 1610.
Five bidders spanning three continents competed for the historic
jewel at a Sotheby's auction where there was little evidence of the
current global financial woes.An anonymous telephone bidder purchased
the jewel, put on the market by the House of Prussia and described by
Sotheby's as one of the "most fascinating and romantic" gems ever to
come to auction.
The buyer paid 9,042,500 Swiss francs ($9,699,618) including the
buyer's premium for the pear-shaped, double rose cut diamond more than
double the $2 million to $4 million estimate.
"You are buying an historic work of art you are not buying a
diamond," said Philipp Herzog von Wuerttenberg, chairman of Sotheby's
Europe, following the sale."I fell in love with it when I saw it. It's
the cut, it's the history," he said.The Beau Sancy attracted bids from
North America, Europe and Asia, he said, refusing to give further
details about the buyer.
The diamond's royal connections date back to 1604 when it was bought
for Henri IV of France at the insistence of his wife Marie de Medici who
wore it atop her crown at her coronation. Later that century it was
acquired by the Dutch and used to seal the wedding of Willem II of
Orange Nassau to Mary Stuart, daughter of Charles I of England.
Stuart pawned the rose-cut gem to finance her brother Charles II's
fight for the throne.
In 1702, the first king of Prussia gave it pride of place in the new
royal crown and it has passed through generations of the House of
Prussia until today."We've sold much larger diamonds but it has this
wonderful romantic history, an unparalleled royal history it has never
been in non-royal hands," said David Bennett, co-chairman of Sotheby's
Switzerland, ahead of the sale. The Beau Sancy went under the hammer at
Geneva's Beau Rivage hotel as part of Sotheby's "Magnificent Jewels and
Noble Jewels" sale.A second historic diamond, a 7.3-carat "fancy yellow"
formerly belonging to Charles Edward Stuart, one-time pretender to the
thrones of Great Britain and Ireland, sold to a telephone bidder for
902,500 francs ($968,085) including the buyers premium.More commonly
known as "Bonnie Prince Charlie", his attempts to make the Stuarts
regain the crown failed and following the Battle of Culloden in 1745 he
went into exile in France and Italy, where he is thought to have offered
the gem to the Corsini family in gratitude for their support. A pearl
and diamond tiara created in 1920 by French jeweller Chaumet for the
marriage of Prince Alexandre Murat to Yvonne Gillois meanwhile sold to a
caller for 3.6 million francs ($3.8 million), well over its 1.4 million
franc estimate.
The headpiece boasts one of the largest natural pearls ever recorded,
according to Sotheby's.On Monday a collection of 70 jewels belonging to
billionaire philanthropist Lily Safra was sold by auctioneer Christie's
in Geneva, raising $37.9 million for charity.Brazil-born Safra, 77, was
married to the Jewish-Lebanese banker Edmond Safra who died in a blaze
at his Monte-Carlo penthouse in 1999.
The Elton John AIDS foundation, a water treatment programme in Brazil
and children's hospital in Israel are among 32 charitable institutes to
benefit from the sale of the gems, many of them created specially for
Safra by renowned Paris jeweller JAR.
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