ROYAL JEWELS SOLD

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 75, Issue 42, 19 February 1932, Page 5

ROYAL JEWELS SOLD

TREASURES FROM BAVARIA. AUCTION SALE AT CHRISTIE’S. AH the principal jewellers of Britain, together with experts in diamonds, erneaids, and pearls, recently sat round a torseshoe table at Christie’s in London .nd bid for some of the most famous ;ems submitted to auction. They were he Bavarian crown jewels, described is “the property of the Royal House of Wittelsbaeh,” and presented in 13 Mots.” Thev realised a total of ’39,300. At the ba*ek of the favoured few in -.heir reserved seats, women craned forward and their eyes glistened as the iuetioneers’ porter displayed on a small wooden tray glorious necklaces, brooches and rings. First to come unjer the hammer was the famous inch-wide Wittelsbach blue diamond, brought into the royal house ia 1722 by Maria Amalia of Austria, daughter of the Emperor Joseph L, on her marriage to Archduke Charles Albert of Bavaria. It was set in its present form, a pendart of white brilliants, by their son, Maximilian Joseph 1., in 1761. This prize of the collection, however, remained unsold, for the reserve price was far in excess of the final bid of £5,600. Next came a brilliant pendant or three large stones with a centre one of circular shape, which an archduke nearly two centuries ago had fashioned by a Munich jeweller. This quickly went to a Paris firm for £4OOO. The surprise of the sale was £7OOO for a tiara of 49 graduated brilliants with suspended briolettes of varying sizes, all arranged to meet the whims of Ludwig I. Then there was the rarity of a cinnamon-yellow brilliant, admired throughout the art world, which had a reserve of £1550, and wonderful emeralds each weighing from 28 to 99 carats. Competitio . for these was very keen and produced huge prices, the first stone alone leading off with £5600. All nine changed hands for £21,150. Counting the disposal of other jewellery the day’s turnover was £86.963.