The royal couple. Photo: Sotheby's.

LONDON.- Twenty-six years after the legendary auction of the “Jewels of the Duchess of Windsor”, Sotheby’s London will present – in its sale of Fine Jewels on 12 December 2013– a fascinating group of jewels and precious objects celebrating the lives and tastes of the Duke and the Duchess of Windsor. Many of these precious objects are engraved with inscriptions marking important events in the history of the British monarchy and shedding light on the life of four generations of the royal family, from Queen Victoria (1819-1901) to the Duke of Windsor (1894-1972). Highlights include signed jewels formerly in the Collection of the Duchess of Windsor-a woman who was the epitome of elegance and sophistication for her generation and beyond and for whom Edward VIII abdicated the throne of Great Britain. 

Commenting on the forthcoming sale, David Bennett, Chairman of Sotheby’s Jewellery Division in Europe and the Middle East and Chairman of Sotheby’s Switzerland, said: “Sotheby’s 1987 landmark sale of the Jewels of the Duchess of Windsor remained the most valuable single-owner jewellery sale for almost a quarter of a century and inaugurated a new era in the jewellery auction market. Three years ago, we witnessed the continuing fascination for this collection when 20 pieces from the original sale reappeared at auction in Sotheby’s London and established new price levels. We are delighted to present this further selection of attractive jewels and precious objects, which shed light on the Duke’s life, and what has been called the greatest love story of the 20th century”. 

Some of the highlights are presented below:

HISTORY THROUGH THE INSCRIPTIONS

A Gift from Queen Victoria to her great-grandson, Prince Edward

Many pieces formerly in the collection of the Prince of Wales are dated and bear inscriptions of an intimate nature, including a rectangular silver pocket frame engraved “From Great Grandmama V.R.I. 24th May 1899” whose cover conceals an oval photograph of Queen Victoria seated. The presentation case features a stylised 80 in yellow gold on the front and was gifted to the four-year old Edward on the occasion of the Queen’s 80th birthday (est. £6,000-10,000).

Silver pocket photograph frame, maker's mark of W.R.Wright for Wright & Davis, circa 1898. Photo: Sotheby's.

The rectangular case engraved 'From Great Grandmama V.R.I. 24th May 1899', applied with an entwined gold 80,  the slide-action cover concealing an oval photograph of Queen Victoria seated, measuring approximately 75 x 50 x 5mm, British hallmark. Estimate £6,000-10,000

Provenance: Sotheby's, The Jewels of the Duchess of Windsor, Geneva, Friday 3rd April 1987, Lot 191.

Note: It seems the Edward had a warm relationship with Queen Victoria, whom he affectionately called ‘Gangan’. However at about the time this photograph was taken, Edward as a young boy and his brother Albert were summoned to see their great grandmother, an event that must have been fairly daunting for a boy of about four or five who promptly burst into tears upon seeing the seemingly intimidating regal figure, dressed all in black.

Queen Victoria is photographed dressed in black which she wore for the remainder of her life after the death of her husband, Prince Albert. This present was gifted just under two years before her death in January, 1901, when Edward was 4 years old and on the occasion of her 80th birthday. 

In 1897, Victoria had written instructions for her funeral, which was to be military as befitting a soldier's daughter and the head of the army. On 25 January, Edward VII, the Kaiser and Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught, helped lift her into the coffin.She was dressed in a white dress with her wedding veil. Mementos commemorating her extended family, friends and servants were laid in the coffin with her, at her request, by her doctor and dressers. One of Albert's dressing gowns was placed by her side, with a plaster cast of his hand, while a lock of John Brown's hair, along with a picture of him, were placed in her left hand concealed from the view of the family by a carefully positioned bunch of flowers. Items of jewellery placed on Victoria included the wedding ring of John Brown's mother, given to her by Brown in 1883. Her funeral was held on Saturday, 2 February, in St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, and after two days of lying-in-state, she was interred beside Prince Albert in the Royal Mausoleum at Windsor Home Park.

King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra

Albert Edward, Queen Victoria’s son and future King Edward VII (reign: 1901-1910) married Princess Alexandra of Denmark in 1863. In October 1875, he set off for India on an extensive eight-month tour of the sub-continent whose success contributed to the crowning of Victoria as Empress of India. Before he embarked, Princess Alexandra gave him a John Walker silver open-faced keyless watch whose band is engraved with the inscription “From Alix, 11 October 1875” (est. £4,000-6,000). The royal couple is reunited in a pair of gold and painted enamel cufflinks, one with a portrait of Queen Alexandra, the other with a portrait of King Edward VII (est. £6,000-10,000). 

A silver open-faced keyless watch, no. 14306, John Walker, London, circa 1875. Photo: Sotheby's.

Gilt three quarter plate gilt lever movement, bi-metallic compensation balance, black enamel dial, Roman numerals, subsidiary seconds, silver case with glazed display back with polychrome enamel cypher of Albert Edward, Prince of Wales, later King Edward VII, the band engraved with the inscription ‘From Alix, 11th October 1875’, diameter measuring approximately 475mm. Estimate 4,000 — 6,000 GBP

Provenance: Sotheby's, The Jewels of the Duchess of Windsor, Geneva, Friday 3rd April 1987, Lot 250.

Note: Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Emperor of India from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910.

The eldest son of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Prince Edward held the title of Prince of Wales for longer than any of his predecessors. Christened Albert Edward at St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, on 25 January 1842 he was named Albert after his father and Edward after his maternal grandfather Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn, and was known as Bertie to his family throughout his life.

Prince Edward was married to Princess Alexandra at St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, on the 10th March 1863, establishing Marlborough House as their London residence and Sandringham House in Norfolk as their country retreat, where they entertained on a lavish scale.

During the long reign of his mother, he was largely excluded from political power and came to personify the fashionable, leisured elite, performing ceremonial public duties, pioneering the concept of royal public appearances, representing Britain on visits abroad, including tours of North America in 1860 and the Indian subcontinent in 1875.

The inscription 'From Alix, 11th October 1875’, refers to Princess Alexandra who gifted the watch to her husband, Prince Edward ( later Edward the VII), on the occasion of his visit to the Indian Subcontinent in 1875, undertaken aboard the converted Indian troop ship H.M.S. Serapis returning to Portsmouth on 5th May 1876.

Pair of gold and painted enamel cufflinks, circa 1905. Photo: Sotheby's.

Each with an oval terminal, one with a portrait of Queen Alexandra, the other with a portrait of King Edward VII, enamel slightly imperfect. Estimate 6,000 — 10,000 GBP

Provenance: Sotheby's, The Jewels of the Duchess of Windsor, Geneva, Friday 3rd April 1987, Lot 120.

Three Generations of Kings in a collection of Cufflinks

The collection features further fine examples of cufflinks covering the reigns of Edward VII and his successors, George V and Edward VIII. Among them are a pair of gold and tinted crystal intaglio cufflinks decorated with the Prince of Wales’ feathers and the cypher of King George V (reign: 1910-1936) as Prince of Wales (est. £8,000-12,000) and a pair of 18 carat gold, mother-of-pearl, enamel and rose diamond cufflinks applied with the cypher of King George V and Queen Mary respectively within the Garter Motto (est. £5,000-7,000). 

Pair of gold and tinted crystal intaglio cufflinks, 1905. Photo: Sotheby's.

Each crystal intaglio of oval form decorated respectively with the Prince of Wales' feathers and the cypher of King George V as Prince of Wales. Estimate  8,000 — 12,000 GBP.

Provenance: Sotheby's, The Jewels of the Duchess of Windsor, Geneva, Friday 3rd April 1987, Lot 116.

Note: Prince George was invested as Prince of Wales in 1901 when he was 36 years of age. Whilst Prince of Wales he travelled extensively with his wife, Princess Victoria Mary of Teck, opening the first session of the Australian Parliament upon the creation of the Commonwealth of Australia. Upon the death of his father, King Edward VII, on 6th May 1910, he became King George V.

Pair of  gold, mother of pearl, enamel and rose diamond cufflinks, circa 1920. Photo: Sotheby's.

Each oval link set with mother of pearl and applied with the cypher of King George V and Queen Mary respectively within the Garter Motto. Estimate  5,000 — 7,000

Provenance: Sotheby's, The Jewels of the Duchess of Windsor, Geneva, Friday 3rd April 1987, Lot 121. 

Note: George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 through the First World War (1914–18) until his death in 1936. 

He became the first monarch of the House of Windsor, which he renamed from the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha as a result of anti-German public sentiment, during The Great War. His reign witnessed the rise of socialism, communism, fascism, Irish republicanism, and the drive for Indian independence at the begining of the 20th Century. On his death in 1936 he was succeeded by his eldest son, Edward VIII.

A Present from “Mama”, Queen Mary

Many pieces in the collection give an insight into the life of the Duke of Windsor, when he was Prince of Wales and during his brief reign as Edward VIII (January-December 1936). Smoking was a habit he took on at 17 during a three-month sea voyage. He later recalled how his 18th birthday was marked by his father King George V allowing him to smoke. The collection comprises an ensemble of cigarette cases gifted to Edward–known to the royal family as David. Two of these cases were gifts from his mother Queen Mary and are engraved with facsimile inscriptions.

The first - a silver cigarette case in Russian taste by W. Hornby-features the engraving ‘David from Mama, Xmas 1913’ (est. £4,000-6,000). The second- a rectangular case of basket weave design in silveris inscribed ‘Darling David from Mama, God bless you, 1925’ and may have been gifted to Edward on the occasion of his 31st birthday, after he returned from a successful world tour (est. £4,000-6,000). 

Silver cigarette case in Russian taste, W. Hornby, 1909. Photo: Sotheby's.

The rectangular case with reeded body, the thumb piece gem set, the interior gilt and engraved, 'David from Mama, Xmas 1913', fitted with vesta compartment and fusee aperture, measuring approximately 90 x 55 x 15mm, British hallmark for London. Estimate  4,000 — 6,000 GBP

Provenance: Sotheby's, The Jewels of the Duchess of Windsor, Geneva, Friday 3rd April 1987, Lot 218. 

Note: Despite the long years of separation between mother and son following the abdication, it is clear that the relationship between the Duke of Windsor and his mother remained an important one to the Duke. The tender inscription seen on this cigarette case, likely gifted to Prince Edward from his mother for Christmas 1913 when he was 19, shows the affection shared between the two.

THE LOVE STORY IN THE INSCRIPTIONS

Pieces in the collection also illustrate important dates in the Duke and Duchess of Windsor’s relationship. Easter marked an important time for the pair and was very often commemorated by a present. During the couple’s enforced separation in the months before their marriage in 1937, Wallis Simpson offered to Edward a spherical watch by Cord. The bezel features an inscription in her handwriting “Wallis Easter 28 –III –37 David”. The watch is part of a group of fob watches estimated at £6,000-8,000. 

Group of fob watches, 20th century. Photo: Sotheby's.

Comprising: a silver half hunting cased keyless lever watch, signed J. Macmichael; two Boucheron watches in leather mounts, on inscribed "W.E" ; a Marvin watch with black dial; a Cord spherical watch, bezel inscribed,‘Wallis Easter 28-III-37 David’; and a gold plated Bulova Accutron. Estimate  6,000 — 8,000 GBP

Provenance: Sotheby's. The Jewels of the Duchess of Windsor, Geneva, Friday 3rd April 1987, Lot 240. 

Note: The inscription to the small spherical watch, Wallis Easter 28-111-37 David in Wallis’ hand poignantly represents the Easter that the couple were forced to spend apart before their eager reunion on 3rd May and their marriage the subsequent month. Following Edward’s abdication in December of 1936, when Wallis was in France, the pair were unable to meet until Mrs Simpson’s second divorce had become absolute several months later, or risk jeopardising the proceedings. The letters and telephone calls they exchanged during this period document the strength of their feeling which must have been particularly difficult for them during Easter, a point on the calendar held as special by both the Prince of Wales and Mrs Simpson, commemorated with the exchanging of gifts between the couple.

A further highlight of the sale is a splendid ensemble of signature Jewels formerly in the Legendary Collection of the Duchess of Windsor. Cartier was one of the most favoured jewellers of the Duke and Duchess. Leading this group is a magnificent sapphire bracelet by Cartier, circa 1945, designed as a series of oval links set with cushion-shaped sapphires in alternating light and dark shades of blue (est. £130,000-180,000). 

Sapphire bracelet, Cartier, circa 1945. Photo: Sotheby's.

Designed as a series of oval links set with cushion-shaped sapphires in alternating light and dark shades of blue, length approximately 220mm, signed Cartier, case stamped Cartier. Estimate 130,000 — 180,000 GBP

Provenance: Sotheby's. The Jewels of the Duchess of Windsor, Geneva, Friday 3rd April 1987, Lot 34. 

Litterature: Cf: Diana Mosley, 'The Duchess of Windsor', London 1980, page 171 for a photograph of the Duchess wearing the bracelet at the Paris Horse Show in 1949.

Further fine examples of Cartier’s extraordinary creations are found in a coral, emerald and diamond choker, of torsade design made in 1949 (est. £40,000-60,000) and an emerald, ruby & diamond brooch from 1930, centering a 20 pesos gold coin dated 1918 (est. £15,000-20,000). 

Coral, emerald and diamond choker, Cartier, 1949. Photo: Sotheby's.

Of torsade design, composed of twenty three rows of coral beads, to an open work tubular clasp set with carved emeralds and single-cut diamonds, the centre set with a row of brilliant-cut diamonds, length approximately 330mm, signed Cartier, Paris, French assay and maker's marks. Estimate  40,000 — 60,000 GBP

Provenance: Sotheby's. The Jewels of the Duchess of Windsor, Geneva, Friday 3rd April 1987, Lot 96. 

Emerald, ruby and diamond brooch, Cartier, Paris, 1930s. Photo: Sotheby's. 

Designed as a 20 pesos gold coin, 1918, within a border of brilliant-cut diamonds, calibré-cut rubies and emeralds, suspended from a similarly set scrolling broochsurmount, signed Cartier. Estimate 15,000 — 20,000 GBP

Provenance: Sotheby's. The Jewels of the Duchess of Windsor, Geneva, Friday 3rd April 1987, Lot 162.

Note: The tasteful design created by Cartier and exhibited in this superb gem set brooch is one favoured by the Duchess. When the brooch was offered in the 1987 sale, it sat alongside a slightly larger example, decorated entirely with diamonds and set similarly with a Mexican medallion.The Duchess can be seen wearing both brooches in the image on the right.

The Duke and Duchess travelled extensively during their lives and enjoyed the diversities of other cultures, suitably reflected in their varied and elegant sense of style. 

The Mexico City Mint, the oldest in North America, produced gold pesos from the early years of the twentieth century until the 1970s in denominations ranging from two pesos to fifty. The Mexican Coat of Arms, an eagle with a serpent in its beak, perched on a cactus, features on the front of each of the coins. The 20 pesos coin, incorporated by Cartier into the design of this brooch, depicts the Aztec Calendar Sun Stone to its reverse, more accurately named Cuauhxicalli or Eagle Bowl. The original stone, dedicated to the principal Aztec deity, the sun, is believed to have been carved in 1479 and holds both mythological and astrological significance.