Two Diamond Bracelets that Belonged to Queen Marie-Antoinette, Set up for Auction

Two gold bracelets that belonged to the famous Queen of France Marie-Antoinette, each with one hundred diamonds, will be put up for public auction for the first time.

The event will take place on November 9, and is organized by Christie's in Geneva, according to Le Figaro.

"These diamonds are extraordinary not only because of their origin but also because they contain: 112 old diamonds. Their size ranges from about a carat for the smallest to over four carats for the largest diamonds in the middle," Marie-Cécile Cisamolo, a jewelry specialist at Christie's, told AFP.

The two bracelets placed in a delicate box will be sold in the same lot.

The price of Marie-Antoinette's Diamond Bracelets

"They are estimated at between 2 and 4 million dollars, a price that includes not only their intrinsic value but also the possibility of owning jewelry that was ordered by the famous Queen Marie-Antoinette," revealed the expert.

These historical jewels could be purchased far beyond the estimate.

For example, in 2018, a diamond pendant that belonged to Maria-Antoinette, adorned with an exceptionally large natural pearl, was sold at Sotheby's, Geneva, for 36 million dollars, after being valued at between 1 and 2 million dollars.

Each of the two diamond bracelets that belonged to Queen Marie-Antoinette is made up of three rows of diamonds. The two bracelets can also be assembled to be worn as a necklace.

The auction house estimated that the diamonds on the bracelets could weigh a total of 140 to 150 carats.

The History of the Diamond Bracelets

According to Christie's, the bracelets were ordered from the jeweler Charles Auguste Boehmer in Paris in 1776 by Marie-Antoinette, who had become Queen of France two years earlier.

"The total price of these bracelets was 250,000 pounds, which was a significant amount at the time. They were paid with precious stones", Marie-Cécile Cisamolo said.

Then came the French Revolution. If Marie-Antoinette was guillotined, her jewelry survived. Before attempting to flee France with Louis XVI and the children, Marie-Antoinette had sent the jewelry pieces to Brussels, from where they were then passed on to relatives in Austria, the queen's homeland.

Among the well-known jewelry pieces of the queen we see, alongside the famous pearl diamond pendant previously mentioned, a pair of earrings adorned with fine pearls and a pearl necklace, as well as a brooch adorned with yellow diamonds dating from the early eighteenth century.

Queen Marie-Antoinette also loved luxury watches, as evidenced by such a piece of pocket jewelry engraved with the initials "MA" and three lily flowers.

Arrested at Varennes, Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette were guillotined in 1793, and their son Louis XVII died in captivity.

The only survivor of the French Revolution, their daughter, Marie-Thérèse of France, was released in 1795. Upon her arrival in Vienna, the Emperor of Austria gave her mother's jewelry, which was carefully preserved.

Having no children, Marie-Thérèse of France bequeathed the jewelry to her niece, the Duchess of Parma.