Old Violet Eyes couldn’t have played it better even if she were there.
The inaugural sale of The Collection of Elizabeth Taylor saw the lights dimming inside Christie’s auction house in New York on December 13. A highlight reel of Taylor’s best performances as an actress came on. After recaps of the familiar 'Cat On a Hot Tin Roof' and 'Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?', came a home video of Taylor sunbathing by the pool while trying to bid on the former Duchess of Windsor’s brooch. As if on cue, the actress said: “It looks as if everything is going to sell much higher than the estimated prices, doesn’t it darling? Keep bidding!”
Offscreen, the spectators laughed, and proceeded to obey. From the start of the Christie’s sale, the atmosphere was electric; the palpable sense of excitement reflecting the glittering collection of jewels and other bespoke creations that accompanied Taylor on her remarkable journey through life.
The sale set the tone for a record-breaking week of sales by becoming—in a single night—the most valuable jewellery sale in auction history. Eighty of the film star’s most iconic jewels fetched $116 million at the black-tie affair on December 13, followed by an eight-hour sale on the next day, which yielded another $21.3 million in sales.
Earlier, an estimated 58,000 visitors viewed highlights from the Collection since September, when Christie’s launched an eight-city global exhibition and tour that reached Moscow, London, Los Angeles, Dubai, Paris, Geneva and Hong Kong. The grand finale of the tour was a 10-day display of the complete Collection at the company’s flagship galleries in New York’s Rockefeller Centre. Not only did the show become the ‘can’t-miss’ event of the holiday season, seven new world records were established on auction day: for price per carat for a colourless diamond and for a ruby; a pair of natural pearl ear pendants; a pearl jewel; an Indian jewel and an emerald.
Chris Wilding, son of Elizabeth Taylor, said: “My mother always acknowledged that she was merely the temporary custodian of the incredible things she owned. Today, I think she would be happy to know that her collections will continue to enrich the lives of those who have acquired pieces.” The first showstopper was The Edith Head Necklace which realized $314,500. This one-of-a-kind gold necklace with ivory opera passes, circa 18th and 19th centuries, captivated the imagination of clients around the globe and attracted fierce competition.
Bequeathed to Taylor by renowned Hollywood costume designer Edith Head, it was believed to be hugely cherished by the actress.
The Elizabeth Taylor Diamond ring (33.19 carats; D colour; potentially internally flawless) fetched $8.81 million. One of the amazing gifts given by Richard Burton in 1968, the piece was a constant in Taylor’s life and was the ring that she wore virtually every day for more than three decades. Bought by Burton at auction as the Krupp diamond for $300,000, it was renamed in homage to the actress.
The JAR Sapphire Ear Clips sparked a frenzied bidding war and sold for $602,500. Bought in Paris in 2001, the diamond and multi-coloured sapphire ‘ball’ ear clips were reportedly custom-designed for Taylor by jeweller Joel Rosenthal (aka JAR) to evoke the elusive hue of the actress’ violet-blue eyes.
The top lot of the sale was the legendary 16th century pearl La Peregrina, which realized $11.84 million. A gift from Burton in 1969 (who bought it for $37,000 at auction), it was discovered in the 1500s in the Gulf of Panama. It was part of the crown jewels of Spain for generations and ranks as one of the world’s most important historic pearls.
The Taj Mahal Diamond, circa 1627-28, a diamond and jade pendant necklace with a later ruby and gold chain designed by Cartier, realized $8.81 million. Inscribed with the name of Nur Jahan, the heart-shaped diamond is believed to have been a gift from Jahangir to Shah Jahan. Burton gave the necklace to Taylor for her 40th birthday in 1972.
The 8.24-carat Ruby and Diamond Ring, by Van Cleef & Arpels, was yet another gift from Burton. He had promised to buy Taylor a special ruby, but wanted it to be perfect. Four years after making his promise, he tucked a small box into the bottom of Elizabeth’s Christmas stocking in 1969; it was “so small” that she missed it when opening her gifts. It’s clearly not that small any more—it fetched $4.22 million at auction.
Burton’s big heart (and wallet) were much in evidence, of course, but Taylor’s other men also got a look in. The Cartier Ruby Suite, the collection of ruby and diamond jewellery gifted to the actress by her producer husband Mike Todd, fetched $5.40 million. The story goes that Todd gave Taylor the jewels while she was swimming in the pool at their villa in St.-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, in August 1957. Without a mirror at hand to see how her jewels looked, she studied her reflection in the pool instead and saw an array of jewels flashing on her neck, ears and wrist. Delighted, she said, she “shrieked, put my arms around Mike’s neck, and pulled him into the pool with me”.
One imagines that the new buyers are doing some happy shrieking of their own.