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400 year-old rare Beau Sancy diamond to go under the Sotheby’s hammer
Can you even imagine in the wildest dream of yours that a huge diamond being pawned by European kings to set off royal debts? The sparkling new stone will go under Sotheby’s hammer at Geneva on May 15. The gem named the “Beau Sancy” has been a part of the fluctuating European royal family’s fortunes for well over 400 years. The 35-carat modified “pear double rose cut” diamond original was owned by to Georg Friedrich, Prince of Prussia. It is estimated to earn between $2 million to $4 million. The stone has its origins at the mines in India near Golconda which was acquired by Nicolas de Harlay, Lord of Sancy, in Constantinople in the 1500s from where it gets its name. In 1604 the stone was purchased by French King Henry IV for 75,000 livres for his wife, Marie de Medici. Other such rare stones that went under the hammer include the vivid pink, rare yellow diamonds and pink and purple ones among others.
Charlie Chaplin’s iconic black hat to be auctioned soon
Charlie Chaplin is one name that is familiar to everyone residing in any corner of the world. At Sotheby’s New York is all set to put Charlie Chaplin’s first signature bowler hat under the hammer. First seen in the silent film called the Tramp the iconic hat has been around since 1909. The hat is estimated to fetch up to $24,000 whenever auctions commence.
As per a spokesperson for Sotheby’s, Chaplin wore it when he was in England and when he toured America. Other items on sale include a gift that Chaplin made to actor Bert Bailey, along with a note of provenance.
A Louis XVI Ormolu-Mounted Japanese Lacquer Commode
The new high set up at Sotheby for a commode is $6,914,500. Under its four-day auction of Property from the Collections of Lily & Edmond J. Safrawith earned a staggering $45,900,064.Of the 800 lots of magnificent European furniture and works of art, Russian works of art, silver, paintings and book bindings, dated to 18th-century went under the hammer, a Louis XVI Ormolu-Mounted Japanese Lacquer Commode was the high point in lot two.The commode with secretaire en suite, credited to Adam Weisweiler, fetched a massive $6,914,500.
Gagarin Tourbillon commemorates the 50th anniversary of Yuri Gagarin’s historic space flight
The Gagarin Tourbillon by Bernhard Lederer, designed to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Russian astronaut’s historic flight into space. The ultra limited edition wristwatch is inspired by the Vostok space capsule, which successfully completed its test flight into space on March 25 1961, and will be auctioned off on April 12 itself at Sotheby’s in New York.
The tourbillon is suspended by a sweeping bridge inspired by the 25-meter commemorative statue at Gagarin’s landing site near Engels, Russia. An integrated rotating magnifying glass allows appreciation of details on the dial. The tourbillon boasts a mechanical manual winding movement entirely developed and produced by Bernhard Lederer in Switzerland, providing a power reserve of approximately 80 hours. Other fine specs include, a case made out of Platinum 950, sapphire crystal display, micro-engraved text with highlights of Yuri Gagarin’s flight and a complex movement with 264 components and 35 jewels.
A Soviet space capsule is estimated to fetch millions
Sotheby’s in New York is a vehicle slightly damaged but offers extremely high mileage. We are talking about a historic Soviet space ship, worth every penny. There seems to be much fascination for space objects among the wealthy. Previously an original Space Shuttle Orbiter, a Russian spacesuit and Nasa’s space shuttle were all known to go under the hammer. Sotheby’s will auction the spherical Vostok 3KA-2 Space Capsule on April 12th, the 50th anniversary of the first manned space flight by Soviet pilot Yury Gagarin with a pre-sale estimate of $2 million to $10 million. The battered craft served as the model used for the final dummy run before Gagarin left on his mission and is probably the only example outside of Russia of the world’s first spacecraft.
In spite of its surprisingly small size, it comes with a monumental history from when it was sent into space on March 25, 1961, carrying a life-sized human mannequin and a small dog named Zvezdochka, meaning “Little Star.” The capsule completed one orbit, then re-entered the atmosphere and landed safely under parachute. Of course it bears the scars of its journey with a blackened bottom half from scorching while re-entering the Earth’s atmosphere and a huge dent on the top half of the outside shell.
The Most Desirable Diamond To Be Auctioned
Fancy intense pink, a 24.78 carat diamond is the one which auctioneers have valued at 27 million to 38 million is to go under the hammer.
The auction is to be done in Geneva by Sotheby’s on the 16th of November is a luxury lakeside hotel. This diamond has been kept in a private collection since sixty years. Pink diamonds, said to have been discovered in India, are supposed to be sought after by collectors and traders alike. This particular diamond said to be one of the purest diamond existing, which is to be auctioned very soon, is a flawless emerald-cut gemstone that is going to be the centre-piece of Sotheby’s auction of rare and precious jewelry next week. It is also said to be a stone that has immense character, appeal, is very wearable and of the perfect size.
“Finding of Moses” Sets New Record
Alma-Tadema possibly became infatuated with Egyptian themes on a visit to the British Museum in 1862 where the main attraction was the newly acquired Elgin Marbles. Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema’s 19th-century painting, “The Finding of Moses,” had a pre-sale estimate of $3 million to $5 million. At Sotheby’s 19th Century European Art Sale November 4, it sold for a remarkable $35,922,500. Once the bidding started, it rose quickly to more than $20 million in a battle between two clients on the phone. Then a new bidder in the room raised a paddle for a $23 million bid. After several more minutes, the painting was sold to one of the initial bidders. The whopping price sets a new record for the artist at auction. His previous record set for this same painting was $2.8 million in 1995.
The painting depicts the pharoah’s daughter carried aloft by bare-chested slaves while her handmaidens hoist the baby Moses in his basket so that his new “mother” can gaze down at him. Although not too biblically correct, it’s still a meticulously painted version of an Old Testament scene.
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