Elizabeth Taylor once said that the three loves of her life were Mike Todd, Richard Burton and jewelry. Now the gifts that the two men gave Elizabeth Taylor to satisfy the third of her passions will go on sale.
The late actress’s entire collection of 300 pieces, valued at $30million (£18.8million), will be auctioned at Christie’s in New York in December.
"These are the top jewels that Elizabeth Taylor received from the great loves of her life, Mike Todd and Richard Burton," said Christie's jewelry expert Rahul Kadakia. It's an extraordinary collection of rubies, diamonds, emeralds and sapphires
Lots will include the fi
rst jewel Burton bought for Taylor — the 33.19-carat Asscher-cut Krupp Diamond, which later became known as The Elizabeth Taylor Diamond. Burton bought the diamond, set in a platinum ring, for $305,000 in 1968, and Christie's is expected to fetch up to $3.5million (£2.2m)."Elizabeth Taylor used to refer to it as her baby and wore it as much and as often as she could," said Kadakia, including in nearly all her subsequent films.
Other standout items include the 16th-century La Peregrina, one of the largest and most symmetrically perfect pear-shaped pearls in the world, which Burton bought for Taylor in 1969 as a Valentine’s Day gift.
Once part of the Crown Jewels of Spain, the pearl later passed into the hands of Joseph Bonaparte, Napoleon III and the Duke of Abercorn.
When it came up at auction in New York, Burton snapped it up for $37,000, beating out the underbidder, a member of the Spanish Royal family.
Cartier later created a ruby and diamond necklace from which the pearl was suspended, a design that was inspired by the famous Velazquez portraits of Spain's Queen Margarita and Queen Isabel wearing the pearl as a necklace.
It is estimated to fetch $2 million to $3 million.
Burton loved histo
rical pieces, and in 1972 purchased the famous 17th-century Taj Mahal diamond pendant for Taylor's 40th birthday. The transaction took place at John F. Kennedy International Airport because the couple didn't have time to run into the city before catching a plane, said Kadakia.The heart-shaped diamond is associated with one of history's greatest love stories. It belonged to Emperor Shah Jahangir, who had the diamond inscribed with his wife's name "Nur Jahan." He later passed the stone on to his son, Shah Jahan, who built the Taj Mahal in memory of his wife Mumtaz, who died in childbirth.
"I would have liked to buy her the Taj Mahal but it would cost too much to transport," Burton remarked after buying it.
Cartier later recreated the diamond's original silk cord as a gold rope-like necklace set with rubies and diamonds.
The necklace has a pre-sale estimate of $300,000 to $500,000.
"Jewelry was a way of life for Elizabeth Taylor. They were her friends. She enjoyed wearing them and it gave her a lot of pleasure because they reminded her of the great moments in her life, the great places in her life," Kadakia said.
Like the time Taylor's third husband, theater and film producer Mike Todd, presented her with a red leather Cartier box as she sat by the pool at a rented villa in the south of France. Inside was a ruby necklace, matching earrings and bracelet.
"She was so, so happy that she jumped into the pool wearing all this jewelry and started doing laps," said Kadakia, adding that the pieces will be sold separately.
Eighty of the most iconic pieces will be sold on the evening of Dec. 13. The following day, 189 more gems will be sold. About 500 pieces of Taylor's costume jewelry will be sold online at the same time.
Prior to the auction, Christie's will ship the top 80 jewelry pieces to Geneva, Paris, Hong Kong, Dubai and Los Angeles; many of them will also be shown in London and Moscow. Serious collectors will be able to try on the jewelry by appointment.
The entire collection will be exhibited from Dec. 3-10 at Christie's New York galleries.
A portion of the proceeds from the exhibition admissions and publications related to the sales will be donated to The Elizabeth Taylor AIDS Foundation. Proceeds from the auctions will go to Taylor's estate.
Based on the information you have, can you ask at least 12 of the following questions?
1. What did Elizabeth Taylor ……………….?
2. Where will the jewels be …………..?
3. When will the jewels be …………………?
4. Who did Elizabeth Taylor …………….?
5. What will be ………………..?
6. When did Burton …………………?
7. What did Burton …………………?
8. How much did Burton …………………?
9. Where did Burton …………………?
10. How often did Elizabeth Taylor ……………?
11. What did Shah Jahan ………………..?
12. When did his wife Mumtaz ……………?
13. What did Mike Todd …………………?
14. Where did Mike Todd …………………?
15. After Mike Todd gave Elizabeth Taylor the ring, what did she…………………?
16. On December 13 how many pieces will …………………..?
17. When will 189 more gems ………………?
18. Where will Christie's ……………………..?
19. What will serious collectors……………..?
20. How long will Christie's ……………….?
