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Lot Essay
The Maharajas of Baroda were renown as having outstanding jewellery, much of which was collected by Khande Rao Gaekwar (ruled 1856 - 1870) and to a lesser extent his brother, Malhar Rao Gaekwar (ruled 1870 - 1875). It was Khande Rao who bought the three famous diamonds, the Akbar Shah (73.50 carats), the Star of the South (128.80 carats) and the English Dresden (78.53 carats) to add to his already impressive collection. The maharaja's pearls were no less important and the seven-strand Baroda pearl necklace had, as its centre, pearls "almost the size of marbles."
The Delhi Durbar of 1911 was one of the most spectacular events of the British Raj. It was held to crown King George V as Emperor and also to mark the transfer of the capital to Delhi from Calcutta. Naturally, each maharaja tried to be the most bejewelled, and it was on this historic occasion that the Maharaja of Baroda wore his famous pearls.
Julian and Jacques Arpels were frequent visitors to many homes of the Maharaja and Maharani of Baroda and their passion for gem-stones and pearls is self-evident from the many photographs that exist of their life in the aftermath of the Second World War. It is therefore not surprising to find this pair of earrings signed by Van Cleef & Arpels.
There have been a number of famous pearls sold at Christie's over the years. In 1987, we sold "The Pelegrina", a 133.16 grain pearl that had an illustrious history having been once part of the Spanish Crown Jewels and subsequently the property of Princess Tatiana Youssoupov (1769 - 1841). In 1988, we were entrusted to sell "La Regent", a pearl of 302.68 grains, which had once been part of the French Crown Jewels until sold in Paris in May 1887. It was acquired by Peter Carl Fabergé for Princess Zenaide Youssoupov. Only last November, in Geneva, we sold the pearl necklace belonging to Barbara Hutton for a world record auction price of US$1,450,000.
The finest pearls come from the Persian Gulf where divers have sought these precious gems for over 2000 years. Bahrain was the centre of the pearl trade, with the bulk of the pearls recovered between June and September. Up until 1932, pearls had been the bedrock of the local economy but as soon as oil was discovered, everything changed. Divers were harder to hire and inevitably pollution reduced the oyster beds and so within 30 years the industry was all but finished. The other event that hastened the decline of the use of natural pearls was the arrival in 1922 of cultured pearls that had, over a long period, been developed by Kokichi Mikimoto (1858 - 1954).
Today, large natural pearls are rare and the pair of pearl and diamond earrings offered here have all three necessary attributes of an important lot, namely: quality, signature and provenance.
The Delhi Durbar of 1911 was one of the most spectacular events of the British Raj. It was held to crown King George V as Emperor and also to mark the transfer of the capital to Delhi from Calcutta. Naturally, each maharaja tried to be the most bejewelled, and it was on this historic occasion that the Maharaja of Baroda wore his famous pearls.
Julian and Jacques Arpels were frequent visitors to many homes of the Maharaja and Maharani of Baroda and their passion for gem-stones and pearls is self-evident from the many photographs that exist of their life in the aftermath of the Second World War. It is therefore not surprising to find this pair of earrings signed by Van Cleef & Arpels.
There have been a number of famous pearls sold at Christie's over the years. In 1987, we sold "The Pelegrina", a 133.16 grain pearl that had an illustrious history having been once part of the Spanish Crown Jewels and subsequently the property of Princess Tatiana Youssoupov (1769 - 1841). In 1988, we were entrusted to sell "La Regent", a pearl of 302.68 grains, which had once been part of the French Crown Jewels until sold in Paris in May 1887. It was acquired by Peter Carl Fabergé for Princess Zenaide Youssoupov. Only last November, in Geneva, we sold the pearl necklace belonging to Barbara Hutton for a world record auction price of US$1,450,000.
The finest pearls come from the Persian Gulf where divers have sought these precious gems for over 2000 years. Bahrain was the centre of the pearl trade, with the bulk of the pearls recovered between June and September. Up until 1932, pearls had been the bedrock of the local economy but as soon as oil was discovered, everything changed. Divers were harder to hire and inevitably pollution reduced the oyster beds and so within 30 years the industry was all but finished. The other event that hastened the decline of the use of natural pearls was the arrival in 1922 of cultured pearls that had, over a long period, been developed by Kokichi Mikimoto (1858 - 1954).
Today, large natural pearls are rare and the pair of pearl and diamond earrings offered here have all three necessary attributes of an important lot, namely: quality, signature and provenance.