Napoleon Diamond Necklace (most spectacular)

One of the most spectacular all-diamond pieces ofMarie-Louise died in 1847, the necklace was given
jewelry in the Smithsonian Insitution is theto her sister-in-law, Archduchess Sophie of
Napoleon necklace. Thought to have originally beenAustria, who removed two stones to shorten the
owned by Catherine the Great of Russia, it wasnecklace. Earrings were made with the two
presented by the Emperor Napoleon of France toremoved stones, the whereabouts of which are
his second wife, Marie-Louise of Austria on theunknown.
birth of their son in 1811. The silver and gold setIn 1872, the necklace was bequeathed to the
necklace contains172 diamonds weighing 275Archduchess' son, Archduke Karl Ludwig of
carats - 28 oval and cushion-cut diamonds,Austria. In 1948, Archduke Ludwig's grandson,
dangling 19 briolette-cut oval and pear shapedPrince Franz Joseph of Liechtenstein, sold the
diamonds and accented by small, round diamondsnecklace to a French collector who then sold it to
and diamond set motifs in a silver and gold setting.Harry Winston in 1960. Marjorie Merriweather Post
The diamonds are cut in "old mine" style, theobtained the necklace from Winston and donated
precursor to the modern brilliant cut, and have ait to the Smithsonian Institution in 1962.
high degree of fire (flashes of color as the stoneIt’s difficult to value a piece like this in
moves in light), but less brilliance due to less lighttoday’s market. However, in 1993, the
refraction through the top of the stone.auction house Christie’s in Geneva sold
The necklace has an estimated total gem weightanother necklace that Napoleon had given to
of 275 carats, and the largest single diamond on itMarie-Louise that was composed of rubies and
weighs approximately 10 carats. Whendiamonds. This necklace sold for $13 million.