A collection of jewels owned by the late Dame Elizabeth Taylor has fetched $116m (£74.9m) at a New York auction. Christie’s sale of 80 items had been estimated to raise about $20m (£13m), but took more than double the record for a single collection.
The highlight was a necklace featuring a 16th Century pearl which sold for
$11.8m (£7.6m), a record for the gem. The actress’ famous 33.19-carat diamond ring, given to her by Richard Burton, also sold for $8.8m (£5.7m). The pearl, known as La Peregrina, has been depicted in artwork for centuries and was once painted by 17th Century Spanish artist Velazquez.
Burton, who married Dame Elizabeth twice, bought the pearl in 1969 at auction
for $37,000 (£23,800). It was once owned by Mary Tudor and later by Spanish queens Margarita and Isabel.
It had been estimated to sell for $2 million (£1.3m) – $3 million (£1.9m),
but surpassed the previous auction record for a pearl, set in 2007 with the sale
of The Baroda Pearls for $7.1m (£4.6m).
The BBC’s Laura Trevelyan, who was at the auction house, said applause broke
out as the bidding passed $10m (£6.4m).
