Overview
- Sotheby’s reported a hammer of 2.85 million Swiss francs and a final price above 3.5 million francs (about $4.4 million) paid by a private collector.
- The circa-1810 circular piece centers an oval diamond over 13 carats, is surrounded by old mine-cut stones, and can be worn as a pendant in its first-ever auction appearance.
- Sotheby’s attributes the provenance to Napoleon’s retreat from Waterloo, its seizure by Prussian forces, and presentation to King Friedrich Wilhelm III before generations in the Hohenzollern collection.
- The result dwarfed a roughly 200,000-franc pre-sale estimate as the Royal & Noble Jewels auction achieved a white-glove outcome and surpassed $14.3 million in total sales.
- A related 132-carat green beryl linked to Napoleon also sold, though reported prices vary, with Forbes citing a result above $1 million to a U.S. museum and AP noting an 838,000-franc hammer.