The Duchess of Windsor Collection
The Duchess of Windsor Collection reached the highest world record for a single-owner jewelry sale ever conducted. The famous royal collection was originally sold in 1987, by Sotheby's in Geneva for the record price of $53.5 million. The Wallis Simpson jewelry collection consisted of 214 pieces. The Duchess of Windsor jewels were not only unique for the record price they sold, but because they grew out of the most controversial love story of modern times. The jewels that comprise of the Duchess of Windsor Collection, which The King, Edward VIII of the British Royal Family, (who I distinguish by the name of "Lion King") lavished unsparingly on Wallis Warfield Simpson were only part of the love tale though. The couple marked the milestones of their romance and 20 years of their marriage with jeweled gifts. More recently, The Cartier jewels from Wallis Simpson and King Edward VIII collection were again sold by Sotheby's at auction in November 2010. Among the pieces in the Duchess of Windsor collection that were auctioned in November, was the Cartier Diamond Bracelet that the Duchess wore on their wedding day. These astonishing pieces of the Duchess of Windsor collection tell again the Wallis and Edward (WE) story in a most personal way and like the Sotheby's auction in 1987 that preceding it twenty three years ago, it set the international society and press agog.
For the Love of Wallis SimpsonEven celebrity couples were no match for this royal couple in love. Indeed, so proud was King Edward VIII of Wallis and the jewelry he gave to she, that Edward wanted the Duchess of Windsor collection of jewels dismantled after her death, so no woman would ever wear the collection. The intention, in itself, is characteristic of a Lion King. (See Further Down Page)But, the King of England who became the Duke of Windsor in 1936 when he abdicated the throne to marry Wallis Simpson, an American divorcee, was not to have his way...... Around 1,000 bidders crowded into a huge tent erected by Sotheby's next to Lake Geneva for the two-day sale. In Sotheby's New York another 600 people were in the main salesroom to view slides of the Duchess of Windsor jewels and to have their bids relayed to Geneva. The jewel that commanded the highest price reached nearly £2m ($3.15m) and was for a 31-carat diamond ring by a Japanese jeweller. Designed in 1935, by the then-Prince of Wales for his future bride, a plume-shaped diamond brooch was sold to
Elizabeth Taylor.
The late Elizabeth Taylor, an avid Jewelry Collector, was a close friend of the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, and said that she often admired the antique diamond ostrich plume brooch (image left) when Wallis Simpson wore it, and bought it mainly for sentimental reasons. Another famous jewel in the collection was a sapphire pendant, that was rumoured to have been bought on behalf of fellow British actress and famous celebrity, Joan Collins. Sapphires were the Duchess of Windsor's favorite
gemstone;
Wallis thought the blue allure of sapphires brought out the color of her eyes and they probably did!
Rubies, Diamonds, Emeralds and Blue Sapphires feature in the exotic Cartier Flamingo Clip in the Duchess of Windsor Collection... The Duchess was also a lover of Natural Pearls. A magnificent strand of Natural pearls, formerly of the collection of the Duchess of Windsor was acquired by Kellie and Calvin Klein.
The Lion King
Among the gifts Edward lavished on Wallis were the signature ‘Great Cats’ commissioned from master jewelers, in collaboration with Edward, creating an international passion for fabulous feline bijoux. Among the pride of la czarina Wallis' "Great Cats" was the Panther Bracelet; purchased for the permanent collection of The Franklin Mint at the Sotheby’s Auction on April 2-3, 1987, in Geneva Switzerland. In 1949, the Duchess of Windsor acquired the diamond and sapphire panther pin from Cartier. (See Image) The panther is crouching in a life like pose, ready to leap over the moon; on a large perfect round cabochon star sapphire weighing 152.35 carats. This panther pin was one of the Duchess' favorite pieces which she frequently wore. Jewelry speaks when words fail us. Let's reason together for a moment, was it purely for the passion of feline bijoux that Edward had the "Great Cats" commissioned? You see, the Leopard as we all know is a Great Cat; and the Leopard Head has been the London Town mark, (crowned & uncrowned) from 1478 to the present. And the Lion, the only Big Cat that lives in large groups is a symbol of the King of England - the Lion Hearted King of England. Big Cats have been the symbol of British royalty for thousands of years! Could the Great Cats Collection that Edward commissioned, go deeper than the passion for feline bijoux? I think so. Could the Great Cats, lest we forget, be speaking to the deepest recesses of the human heart? Was the Great Cats Jewelry, Edward put in the hands of Wallis, (for those that know the subtle ways of jewelry) be in fact, a subtle statement in jewelry art form, that Edward, Whatever, was King. Help Us Save the Big Cats from Extinction! Donate to the Cheetah Conservation Fund. The Duchess of Windsor also wore American costume designer jewelry. Miriam Haskell Jewelry was worn by the Duchess and the rich and famous movies stars of the time, such as movies stars Joan Crawford and Lucille Ball, as well as by Gloria Vanderbilt. The Duchess of Windsor Collection of jewelry has authority and deep personal meaning, and speaks in a language that politics of the 20th century could not. Read About the Language of Wedding Rings HERE
References: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wallis,_Duchess_of_Windsor Photo Credit: http://lisawallerrogers.wordpress.com/2009/09/29/wallis-the-duchess-of-windsor/ on 25th January 2012.
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