NEW YORK – An auction of actress Elizabeth Taylor’s world-renowned jewels took in $116 million (€89 million), more than double the record for a single collection and setting new marks for pearls, colourless diamonds and Indian jewels.
Christie’s sale of 80 items from Taylor’s collection on Tuesday had been estimated to raise about $20 million (€15.3 million), but everything from her famous 33-carat diamond ring, a gift from Richard Burton, to her charm bracelets sold for many times their estimates.
Just halfway into the marathon four-hour sale, the Taylor collection broke the record for a single-owner jewellery collection set in 1987 when the Duchess of Windsor’s jewels sold for just over $50 million.
The pattern was set early on, when one of the most historic pieces, a 203-grain (equivalent to 55-carat) pear-shaped 16th-century pearl, once owned by England’s Mary Tudor and later by Spanish queens Margarita and Isabel, sold for $11,842,500 (€9,110,923) including commission, setting an auction record for a pearl.
Burton, who married Taylor twice, had bought the pearl in 1969 at auction for $37,000, and Taylor, who died in March at age 79, commissioned Cartier to design a ruby-and-diamond necklace mount. It had been estimated to sell for between $2 million and $3 million.
But from the very first item, a charm bracelet estimated at about $30,000, it was clear the Taylor cachet was delivering beyond expectations. The bracelet fetched $326,500.
Minutes later an ivory and gold necklace featuring theatre medallions soared to more than 100 times its $1,500 to $2,000 estimate, selling for $314,500.
The trend continued unabated, right up until the final offering – Taylor’s 33.19-carat diamond, which Burton had bought for $300,000 in 1968.
Selling for $8,818,500 (€6,785,168), or about three times the estimate, it set a per-carat record for a colourless diamond.
Christie’s officials were ecstatic with the results, which followed a monumental 10-day exhibition of Taylor’s jewellery, couture, art and memorabilia which sold 25,000 tickets at $30 each.
Rahul Kadakia, head of jewellery for Christie’s Americas, said the auctioneers knew the sale was going to do very well, given Taylor’s expert eye and fame as one of the last great Hollywood stars.
“This truly is one of the greatest jewellery collections in the world,” he told Reuters. “But in my wildest dreams, I did not think we would outsell the estimate by five times.”
Online auctions of some 1,000 lower-priced items from Taylor’s estate are running concurrently.
– (Reuters)