radioworldtoday
A striking set of diamonds and
amethysts presented by a queen to one of her servants is now up for
auction.
The three piece suite was a gift from
Queen Maud of Norway to her lady in waiting, Marie Fougner.
It’s now up for sale at Sotheby’s as
part of its auction of gems linked to royalty and aristocracy.
The set includes an oval brooch with
a large amethyst surrounded by a frame of smaller diamonds as well
as a pendant with a smaller amethyst as its main jewels which is
set in the centre of a laurel wreath made of diamonds.
The suite is given an even more regal
story by its links to another king and queen. Queen Maud of Norway
was the youngest daughter of King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra
and this set includes a diamond set brooch with their cypher.
Sothebys
The gems will be sold in Geneva on
November 11 as part of a sale that also features jewels that once
belonged to the last Queen of Portugal, Amalia.
It’s also provoked questions after
several gems from the estate of Princess Birgitta of Sweden were
put into the auction. Reports in Swedish media said that Birgitta’s
brother, King Carl XVI Gustaf, could bid for the jewels as he was
unaware his relations were selling them off and many have historic
links to his mother, Princess Sybilla, and his grandmother, Crown
Princess Margaret.
The amethyst set given by a queen to
her servant has an estimate of 6,000 – 8,0000 Swiss francs.
