FRANCE: Princess Soraya's impressive collection of jewellery has been auctinoed in Paris at Drouot-Montaigne auction house

Record ID: 175694

  • Title: FRANCE: Princess Soraya's impressive collection of jewellery has been auctinoed in Paris at Drouot-Montaigne auction house
  • Date: 29th May 2002
  • Summary: (W1) PARIS, FRANCE (MAY 29, 2002) (REUTERS TV) PAN EXTERIOR OF DROUOT-MONTAIGNE AUCTION HOUSE PAN BUYERS ARRIVING AT DROUOT MONTAIGNE SV PEOPLE ENTERING AUCTION ROOM SV POSTER OF SORAYA MCU (French) UNIDENTIFIED COUPLE ASKED IF THEY WILL BUY SOME ITEMS AND SAYING: "We'll try, we'll see. (QUESTION: HAVE YOU SOMETHING IN MIND?) "Maybe." MCU (French) UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN SAYING: "Im going to try (and make a bid) but given the audience, I think the prices will go up high." LV AUCTION ROOM CU PICTURE OF SORAYA SV WOMAN LOOKING AT CATALOGUE TV OF AUCTION ROOM SV AUCTIONER PRESENTING THE AUCTION AND SAYING: "Sale of belongings of her imperial Highness Princess Soraya. In the early 50s Princess Sorayas life was linked with the life of his imperial majesty Mohammed Reza Pahlavi, Shah of Iran." SV BUYER WITH CATALOGUE SHOWING THE DIAMOND AND GOLD NECKLACE PAN TO AUCTIONER STARTING THE BIDS TV BULGARI DIAMOND AND GOLD NECKLACE PRESENTED TO THE PUBLIC TV AUCTIONERS ASSISTANTS ON THE PHONE SV ELECTRONIC BOARD MCU AUCTIONERS ASSISTANT ON THE PHONE SV AUDIENCE LV AUCTIONER SELLING NECKLACE FOR 150.000 EUROS TV PRESENTATION OF VAN CLEEF AND ARPELS YELLOW GOLD RING WITH DIAMONDS SV AUCTIONERS ASSISTANTS ON THE PHONE CU PHOTO OF YELLOW GOLD RING LV ASSISTANT ON THE PHONE CU ELECTRONIC BOARD READING 245.000 EUROS SV AUCTIONER SELING RING FOR 245.000 EUROS CU BOOKLET WITH SORAYAS PICTURE TV AUCTIONER SPEAKING ABOUT THE HARRY WINSTON ENGAGEMENT RING LV OF AUCTION ROOM AND BIDDING CU ELECTRONIC BOARD TV ASSISTANT ON THE PHONE CU PICTURE OF HARRY WINSTON ENGAGEMENT RING PAN AUCTIONER SELLING THE ENGAGEMENT RING FOR 900.000 EUROS/APPLAUSE CU ELECTRONIC BOARD READING 900.000 EUROS LV PEOPLE LEAVING AUCTION ROOM
  • Embargoed: 13th June 2002 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: PARIS, FRANCE
  • Country: France
  • Topics: Royalty,Quirky,Royalty,Light / Amusing / Unusual / Quirky
  • Reuters ID: LVACPR8FWCG3HUU3KV1NM8U5VODB
  • Story Text: Princess Sorayas impressive collection of jewelry has been auctioned in Paris at Drouot-Montaigne auction house.
    More than one thousand items, worth three million euros (US$ 2.75 millions), including magnificient jewels, Egyptian and Roman antiques, Oriental art pieces, tapestry, haute couture outfits, intimate photographs, wedding presents and a red Rolls Royce that belonged to Princess Soraya Esfandiary Bakhtiary, the late Shah of Iran's second wife, went under auction in Paris for three days.
    International buyers gathered at Drouot-Montaigne on Wednesday night (May 29) to make their bids for Soraya's magnificient jewellery, gifts from the Shah of Iran when she was empress.
    The star of the auction, coveted by most buyers, was an engagement ring, a 22-carat diamond ring by Harry Winston, estimated to be valued at between 300 and 500.000 euros, went unde the hammer for 900.000 euros.
    Other spectacular jewels, a Van Cleef and Arpels yellow gold ring with diamonds estimated 150.000 euros and a Bulgari diamond and gold necklace estimated 60.000 euros were respectively sold for 245.000 and 150.000 euros.
    Princess Soraya, who was renowned for her beauty, spent seven years at the Iranian Imperial Court, where she was famed for keeping a pet seal in a fountain, until her marriage with Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi ended in March 1959 after she remained childless. Though she lost the title of empress, the Shah confered on her the title of royal princess.
    At 26, repudiated by her former subjects, she left Iran and became the "princess with the sad eyes," spending the rest of her life in exile in Europe. She died in Paris in October 2001, almost unnoticed in the wake of the September 11th terrorist attacks and the war in Afghanistan.
    All the funds collected over three days will be given to a humanitarian organisation.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2013. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
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