GENEVA — A diamond bracelet formerly owned by Marie Antoinette of France and a sapphire-and-diamond brooch with matching ear clips previously worn by a Russian grand duchess are among the highlights of jeweler and other collectibles auctions in Geneva next week.
During a Sotheby’s auction on Nov. 11, the blue, white, and gold Nike Air Zoom Huarache 2K4 basketball sneakers are projected to earn up to 35,000 Swiss francs (about $38,000). According to the auction site, Bryant donned the sneakers in a win over the Los Angeles Clippers on March 17, 2004.
On Tuesday, Christie’s will auction a stunning set of 18th-century thick bracelets adorned with three rows of tiny diamonds. The bracelets are said to be one of the last remaining pieces of Marie Antoinette’s extensive jewelry collection that is currently for sale.
“Despite Marie-capture Antoinette’s during the French Revolution and her tragic death in 1793, the bracelets survived and were passed on to her daughter, Madame Royale, and then the Duchess of Parma,” said Max Fawcett, head of Christie’s jewelry department, referring to the couple’s daughter Marie-Therese of France and Princess Louise d’Artois, who died in 1864.
“To see them up for sale today is a once-in-a-lifetime chance for collectors all across the world to possess a piece of French royal history,” said Fawcett.
A pair of “perfectly matched” earrings studded with 25.8-carat diamonds, projected to bring up to 5 million francs ($5.5 million), is one of the items Sotheby’s expects to display on Wednesday.
“She was the wife of Grand Duke Vladimir, the tsar’s son, and she was a jewelry connoisseur.” Olivier Wagner, the head of Sotheby’s Magnificent Diamonds auction, remarked, “She had a magnificent collection of jewels.”