Believed to have been lost, a diamond necklace that once belonged to former Queen Mother Nazli of Egypt, King Farouk’s mother, reappeared at the Sotheby’s auction house in New York after forty years since it was sold in the same city. Auctioned among Sotheby’s Magnificent Jewels sale last week, the necklace was expected to sell at $US 3.6-4.6 million. In spite of its priceless historical value, and its unmatched articulate art and royal elegance, the historical necklace was sold for $US 4.282 million. The diamond necklace, which consists of 673 baguette-cut and brilliant- cut diamonds – paired with an exquisite tiara that is no less of a masterpiece – was executed in utmost craftsmanship excellence by the famous Van Cleef and Arpels circa 1939. They were both commissioned by the Queen for the occasion of her 17-year-old daughter, Princess Fawziya’s, wedding to the 19-year-old Crown Prince of Iran, Mohamed Reza Pahlavi. The bill for both pieces came in at around seven million francs. As narrated in history, Queen Nazli who, after a couple of failed marriages, was wedded to then-Sultan of Egypt Fouad I (later crowned King) in 1919. Nevertheless, she was deprived…
