Friday, December 13, 2013

DUCHESS OF WINDSOR'S SAPPHIRE BRACELET BY CARTIER SOLD FOR RM 1.3 MILLION, FAR MORE THAN WHAT THE ACTUAL SAPPHIRES ARE WORTH! BUT OF COURSE THIS BRACELET WAS WORN ON MANY OCCASIONS BY THE DUCHESS OF WINDSOR AND A PIECE OF WEARABLE HISTORY! THE DUCHESS OF WINDSOR WORE THIS BRACELET IN 1972 WHEN QUEEN ELIZABETH II VISITED HER HUSBAND THE DUKE OF WINDSOR FOR THE LAST TIME.

KEE@FSWMAG.COM

THE ENDURING APPEAL OF
The Duke and Duchess of  Windsor
Lot 459 - Cartier Sapphire Bracelet - Duchess of Windsor-1.jpg 

JEWELS AND PRECIOUS OBJECTS CELEBRATING THEIR LIVES AND TASTES
Soar above estimate, selling for £620,125 ($1,016,137)
At Sotheby’s London

London, 12 December 2013 – Today a fascinating group of jewels and precious objects celebrating the lives and tastes of the Duke and the Duchess of Windsor soared above estimate, selling for £620,125 ($1,016,137) at Sotheby’s London (est. £351,500-506,700/ $575,968-830,279). 

The majority of the pieces were presented some 26 years after they were last auctioned in the legendary sale of “The Jewels of the Duchess of Windsor” at Sotheby’s Geneva*.

Speaking after the sale, Bryony Meredith, Head of Sotheby’s London Jewellery Department said: “Today’s results show the longstanding fascination for the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, their lives, their lifestyle and their exceptional taste. On the rare occasions when they have surfaced on the market in the last 30 years, jewels from their collection have consistently set new benchmarks and today was no exception. 

"The offering included not only masterful examples of 20th century jewellery but also pieces whose intimate inscriptions trace the life of four generations of British monarchs and tell what is perhaps one the greatest love stories of our times, the romance that led Edward VIII to abdicate the throne of Great Britain”.

Highlights included signed jewels formerly in the Collection of the Duchess of Windsor - a woman who was the epitome of elegance and sophistication for her generation and beyond and for whom Edward VIII abdicated the throne of Great Britain. 

The top lot of the auction - a magnificent sapphire bracelet by Cartier, circa 1945, sold for £230,500 ($377,697) (est. £130,000-180,000). 

The Duchess was seen wearing this stunning bracelet on the occasion of Queen Elizabeth II’s visit to Paris in 1972, the last time the Queen was to see her uncle the Duke of Windsor prior to his death.

Today’s sale of Fine Jewels on 12 December 2013 brought a combined total of £4,783,200 ($7,837,752). This figure raises the 2013 results for Sotheby’s worldwide jewelry auctions in excess of $600 million – more than 30% above the previous record high for the Company’s sales in this category, set just last year.


Lot 459 - Cartier Sapphire Bracelet - Duchess of Windsor-1.jpg
Lot 459
PROPERTY FROM A PRIVATE COLLECTOR
Sapphire and diamond bracelet, Cartier, circa 1945
Designed as a series of oval links set with cushion-shaped sapphires in alternating light and dark shades of blue, length approximately 220mm, signed Cartier, case stamped Cartier.
PROVENANCE Sotheby’s, The Jewels of the Duchess of Windsor, Geneva, Thursday 2nd April 1987, Lot 34.

LITERATURE
Cf: Diana Mosley, ‘The Duchess of Windsor’, London 1980, page 171 for a photograph of the Duchess wearing the bracelet at the Paris Horse Show in 1949.
Est. £ 130,000-180,000/ € 153,000-211,000/  US$ 211,000-292,000
Sold for £230,500 (€274,503/ $377,697)




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