The most exclusive jewels in Europe will be auctioned from November 5 to 8 at a Geneva Luxury Week event: the most photographed, those belonging to five reigning houses in Europe from the 19th and 20th centuries. With prices only affordable to a few, the court jewels have moved from a German bank to this auction house.
Sotheby's is held twice a year, and on this occasion they have brought together unique pieces from royalty; A necklace with a 93-carat gem could fetch $2.5 million at auction. Another notable piece is a "devant-de-corsage", an accessory to be worn in the central part of a dress, and which would cost half a million dollars.
Catharine Becket, one of the directors of Sotheby, affirms that the luxury jewelry market is not affected by economic crises. "It is a fairly stable sector, there are no peaks and falls like in other categories in the world of collecting," she explained to AP.
Proof of the existing demand is that the auction house will offer almost 100 watches at astronomical prices and they hope to sell them all. One of the most coveted pieces could be a rose gold Patek Philippe moon phase wristwatch that could fetch $4.4 million.
