Diamond Necklace Linked To Marie Antoinette Sells For $4.8 Million

A necklace believed to be connected to a scandal that contributed to the downfall of Marie Antoinette has sold at auction for $4.81 million (£3.8 million).

The Georgian-era piece, featuring approximately 500 diamonds, fetched nearly double its pre-auction estimate at Sotheby’s. I Photo: Sotheby's

The sale was reported by Ruth Comerford for BBC News.

The Georgian-era piece, featuring approximately 500 diamonds, fetched nearly double its pre-auction estimate at Sotheby’s. "It was an electric night," said Andrés White Correal, a jewelry specialist at Sotheby’s.

The buyer, an unnamed woman, was described as "ecstatic." The jewels were sold on Wednesday evening at an auction in Geneva.

White Correal shared the buyer’s sentiment: "She said something beautiful to me: 'I'm exceptionally happy that I won this lot; but I don't own it—I’m merely the custodian until the next person comes along.'"

He added, "There is a niche in the market for historical jewels with fabulous provenances. Buyers are not only acquiring the object but also the rich history attached to it."

Marie Antoinette, born in Austria in 1755, was sent to France as a child bride to the future King Louis XVI. She became France's last queen before being guillotined in 1793, at the age of 37, during the height of the French Revolution.