Marie Antoinette diamond sold at auction for almost $14 million

A rare ten-carat diamond once owned by French Queen Marie Antoinette was sold at Christie's Magnificent Jewels auction for almost $14 million. This was announced on the auction house's website on June 20.

According to legend, during an unsuccessful attempt to escape from Paris in 1791, Marie Antoinette secretly handed over some of her jewelry to the court hairdresser Leonard. Among them was a rare pink-purple diamond of 10.38 carats, cut in the shape of a "kite". Later, the stone passed to Maria Theresa, the only daughter of the Queen, who survived the Great French Revolution.

The jewel, which was previously part of the royal collection, miraculously escaped destruction during the revolutionary years. Over the course of two centuries, the diamond changed hands and in 1996 was sold at auction for $ 13.98 million, three times more expensive than the initial estimate of $ 5-7 million. The name of the new owner was not disclosed, however, according to one version, the stone could have been purchased by a collector of Asian origin.

At the request of the buyer, the diamond received a new setting.: It was inserted into a double ring decorated with a crown of 17 diamonds in the shape of a royal lily.

The essence of Lynch: the director's personal belongings and Napoleon's tent

The most interesting auction lots of June

On May 23, BFMTV announced the sale of a rare saber belonging to the French emperor Napoleon Bonaparte at an auction in Paris for more than €4.6 million. It is specified that the item was initially estimated at between 700,000 euros and 1 million euros, but eventually went under the hammer for 4,663,900 euros.