On 13th Nov 2012, historic
jewelry will add glitter to auctions in Geneva next week as diamonds, rubies
and pearls from Europe's nobility go under the hammer.
The auction house is -
Christie's, a fine arts auction house, and currently the world's largest with
sales for the first half of 2012 some $3.5 billion representing the highest
total for a corresponding period in company and art market history. Christie's
has its main headquarters in London King Street and in Rockefeller Plaza New
York.
The diamond that is
attracting World attention is ‘Archduke Joseph Diamond’ a 76.02 carat cushion shaped diamond, of
perfect D colour and Internally Flawless clarity said to possess a charm like
no other diamond. Its impressive size and superb quality, combined with its
Golconda origin and Historical Habsburg provenance make it one of the world's
most famous and desirable diamonds to appear at auction. This stone enjoys the
distinction of being the twelfth largest “perfect” diamond in the world. Named
for a military man of royal blood, this diamond followed a long history of
courting danger, yet, like its longest tenured owner, was lucky enough to
survive two world wars and a revolution. In the same vein as many of its
contemporaries, this diamond shared the common experience of being locked away
for many years depriving the public of its beauty. However, within the last few
years millions have seen it adorning the neck of a renowned singer on stage and
sparkling on the red carpet worn by an actress thanks to the power of the
modern media.
There is more news
available about the diamond’s most famous owner than the diamond itself. The Archduke Joseph is the largest
historically recorded perfect Golconda diamond, according to Rahul Kadakia,
Christie's head of jewelry for the Americas and Switzerland. According to the auctioneers, this diamond would certainly
to be one of the most important and precious diamonds ever presented at the
auction. This diamond has been officially recorded as the
property of the Archduke Joseph August of Austria, Palatine of Hungary
(1872-1962), and was subsequently named after him.
The colourless gem, which
is about the size of a domino and more than half an inch thick, reportedly was exhibited from October 13 in New York, Hong
Kong and Geneva before the auction in Switzerland on November 13.
The jewel, which belonged
to Archduke Joseph of Austria was put in a vault of the Hungarian General
Credit Bank in 1933 by his son, the Archduke Joseph Francis. The diamond was
sold three years later to an anonymous buyer who left it in a safe during World
War II, escaping the attention of the Nazis. It finally resurfaced in 1961 at
auction in London and was offered for sale in November 1993 at Christie's
Geneva where it fetched $6.5 million. Since then the diamond has changed hands
privately, but Christie's declined to comment on the identity of the current
owner.
Archduke Joseph August
Viktor Klemens Maria of Austria, Prince of Hungary and Bohemia (1872 – 1962)
was for a short period head of state of Hungary. He began his eminent military career in 1902
when he enlisted in the Hungarian territorial reserve, simultaneously studying
law at Budapest University.
With regards – S.
Sampathkumar.
9th Nov. 2012
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