Years 1570-1599
Except otherwise stated, all results include the premium.
See also : Ancient Spain Furniture Chinese furniture Cartier
See also : Ancient Spain Furniture Chinese furniture Cartier
1571-1572 Entombment of Christ by il Greco
2023 SOLD for £ 6.3M by Christie's
Domenikos Theotokopoulos was born in Crete, a Venetian colony with a former Byzantine history. His training in Italy made him assimilate the Christian art from East to West. He was nicknamed il Greco (the Greek in Italian) during that period.
In 1568 he was in Venice where he met and admired Titian. The old artist still had an extraordinary creativity. The Greek began to develop a personal style, a skilled synthesis of both the anecdotal abundance from the icons and the clarity of the composition of Titian.
He realized around that time a first version of the Entombment of Christ. This panel was lost in Madrid during the Spanish Civil War.
The work is emotional and expressive. The group around Christ focuses on the gloomy action reinforced by a bleak landscape and a cold sunset light. The pose of Christ is inspired from Michelangelo's Pieta sculpture. Some elongated figures come from Parmigianino..
Details of faces fade in the backgrounds, as for a new method of expressing the distance. Yet we recognize in the back row of male observers an old man with black cap and white beard, a tribute to Titian.
A cabinet size oil on panel 28 x 19.4 cm was sold by Christie's for $ 6.1M on April 14, 2016, lot 131. Now restituted in its brilliant original palette by the removal of a thick veil of discolored varnish, it was sold for £ 6.3M by the same auction house on July 6, 2023, lot 21. The proposed date is 1571-1572 when Greco had just arrived in Rome. In this picture, Golgotha's three crosses are visible on the left.
A larger version, tempera and oil on panel 36 x 28 cm, was sold for $ 900K by Sotheby's on January 29, 2013, lot 7. It may be dated to the mid-1570s, corresponding to the end of the artist's stay in Italy. The Greek, thenceforward el Greco, reaches Spain in 1577.
In 1568 he was in Venice where he met and admired Titian. The old artist still had an extraordinary creativity. The Greek began to develop a personal style, a skilled synthesis of both the anecdotal abundance from the icons and the clarity of the composition of Titian.
He realized around that time a first version of the Entombment of Christ. This panel was lost in Madrid during the Spanish Civil War.
The work is emotional and expressive. The group around Christ focuses on the gloomy action reinforced by a bleak landscape and a cold sunset light. The pose of Christ is inspired from Michelangelo's Pieta sculpture. Some elongated figures come from Parmigianino..
Details of faces fade in the backgrounds, as for a new method of expressing the distance. Yet we recognize in the back row of male observers an old man with black cap and white beard, a tribute to Titian.
A cabinet size oil on panel 28 x 19.4 cm was sold by Christie's for $ 6.1M on April 14, 2016, lot 131. Now restituted in its brilliant original palette by the removal of a thick veil of discolored varnish, it was sold for £ 6.3M by the same auction house on July 6, 2023, lot 21. The proposed date is 1571-1572 when Greco had just arrived in Rome. In this picture, Golgotha's three crosses are visible on the left.
A larger version, tempera and oil on panel 36 x 28 cm, was sold for $ 900K by Sotheby's on January 29, 2013, lot 7. It may be dated to the mid-1570s, corresponding to the end of the artist's stay in Italy. The Greek, thenceforward el Greco, reaches Spain in 1577.
#AuctionUpdate #ElGreco's 'The Entombment of Christ' realised £6,290,000. In a stark landscape, with the three crosses of Golgotha silhouetted against the sky, the artist gathers crowds of mourners around the body of Christ as he is lowered into the tomb. pic.twitter.com/oHSkt2qfo0
— Christie's (@ChristiesInc) July 6, 2023
1582-1972 La Peregrina
2011 SOLD for $ 11.8M by Christie's
A pearl made five hundred years ago by an anonymous mollusk in the Gulf of Panama got a fabulous destiny. Used in jewelry of all kinds to meet the changes of fashion, it demonstrates that not only diamonds are forever.
It entered in 1582 into the Spanish royal collection, where it was considered as the biggest pearl in the world. Pear-shaped, it was then weighing 223 grains.
Mary I of England, wife of Philip II of Spain, used it very elegantly as a pendant to a brooch. Philip IV of Spain preferred it as a hat pin. It went to France during the Spanish war of Joseph Bonaparte, and Napoleon III sold it to the English aristocracy.
This wandering pearl has been known for two centuries under the name La Peregrina. It lost twenty grains when it was reworked to improve the security of its setting.
Richard Burton bought it in 1969 at Sotheby's auction as a gift to Elizabeth Taylor.
It was mounted as pendant in a pearl necklace that did not please its new owners. Burton and Taylor then made designed by Cartier in 1972 the magnificent necklace of pearls, rubies and diamonds, where it is again hanging as pendant.
This necklace was sold for $ 11.8M from a lower estimate of $ 2M by Christie's on December 13, 2011, lot 12.
It entered in 1582 into the Spanish royal collection, where it was considered as the biggest pearl in the world. Pear-shaped, it was then weighing 223 grains.
Mary I of England, wife of Philip II of Spain, used it very elegantly as a pendant to a brooch. Philip IV of Spain preferred it as a hat pin. It went to France during the Spanish war of Joseph Bonaparte, and Napoleon III sold it to the English aristocracy.
This wandering pearl has been known for two centuries under the name La Peregrina. It lost twenty grains when it was reworked to improve the security of its setting.
Richard Burton bought it in 1969 at Sotheby's auction as a gift to Elizabeth Taylor.
It was mounted as pendant in a pearl necklace that did not please its new owners. Burton and Taylor then made designed by Cartier in 1972 the magnificent necklace of pearls, rubies and diamonds, where it is again hanging as pendant.
This necklace was sold for $ 11.8M from a lower estimate of $ 2M by Christie's on December 13, 2011, lot 12.
GIAMBOLOGNA
1
masterpiece
1582 Ratto delle Sabine, marble
Loggia dei Lanzi
Giambologna's masterpiece is the 4.10 m high group of three figures cut in a single block of marble, installed in 1582 at the Loggia dei Lanzi in Florence. The action is vertical. A muscular man raises a pretty woman of whom he tramples the old husband.
This group of three nudes is traditionally considered as the Rape of a Sabine. The dramatic tension is similar to the Laocoon, an ancient sculpture designed for a unique angle of view. It already announces the Baroque style.
The image is shared by Wikimedia.
This group of three nudes is traditionally considered as the Rape of a Sabine. The dramatic tension is similar to the Laocoon, an ancient sculpture designed for a unique angle of view. It already announces the Baroque style.
The image is shared by Wikimedia.
1 bis
1590-1610 Ratto delle Sabine, bronze by Susini
2019 SOLD for € 4.5M by Sotheby's
Customers request bronzes, which are of course made in reduction. The master approves these copies while leaving a great autonomy to his bronze makers. The best examples are made by his collaborator Antonio Susini, renowned for the beauty of his finish with the chisel.
A Rape of a Sabine 59 cm high was sold for £ 3.7M by Christie's on July 10, 2014. The extreme quality of this cast is confirmed by the X-Ray observation of the regular thinness of the walls. It bears a rare mark identifying the artist's studio and was made between 1587 and 1598.
On December 11, 2019, Sotheby's sold for € 4.5M from a lower estimate of € 2.5M a bronze of the same model, made by Susini around 1600, lot 14. It appears in 1689 in the inventory of the collection of Italian bronzes assembled by Louis XIV for the Grand Dauphin. Its setting in color by a brown patina was made by Gouthière for Louis XVI.
In the same sale, the lot 15 sold for € 1.8M a Fortuna 47 cm high, also attributed to Susini after Giambologna and having belonged to the same French royal collection. This bronze was probably made before 1587, when Susini began to carve the irises in the eyes of his characters.
An Allegory of Architecture as a woman seated in the nude on a cloth was sold on March 27, 2019 by Artcurial for € 3.75M, lot 9. The bronze is 35 cm high over a 19 cm base in green marble. Her body is elongated, with her legs shifted to the right while her head turns to the left in a graceful contrapposto.
This bronze is a smaller copy from a lost original marble made in 1565 in Florence by Giambologna. Both figures have the plumb line and the square crossbar symbolizing the architecture. The technique of its original patina and dry reworking is in the style practiced by Antonio Susini in the 1580s. It may be slightly later. It is marked with a S under a heel.
A Rape of a Sabine 59 cm high was sold for £ 3.7M by Christie's on July 10, 2014. The extreme quality of this cast is confirmed by the X-Ray observation of the regular thinness of the walls. It bears a rare mark identifying the artist's studio and was made between 1587 and 1598.
On December 11, 2019, Sotheby's sold for € 4.5M from a lower estimate of € 2.5M a bronze of the same model, made by Susini around 1600, lot 14. It appears in 1689 in the inventory of the collection of Italian bronzes assembled by Louis XIV for the Grand Dauphin. Its setting in color by a brown patina was made by Gouthière for Louis XVI.
In the same sale, the lot 15 sold for € 1.8M a Fortuna 47 cm high, also attributed to Susini after Giambologna and having belonged to the same French royal collection. This bronze was probably made before 1587, when Susini began to carve the irises in the eyes of his characters.
An Allegory of Architecture as a woman seated in the nude on a cloth was sold on March 27, 2019 by Artcurial for € 3.75M, lot 9. The bronze is 35 cm high over a 19 cm base in green marble. Her body is elongated, with her legs shifted to the right while her head turns to the left in a graceful contrapposto.
This bronze is a smaller copy from a lost original marble made in 1565 in Florence by Giambologna. Both figures have the plumb line and the square crossbar symbolizing the architecture. The technique of its original patina and dry reworking is in the style practiced by Antonio Susini in the 1580s. It may be slightly later. It is marked with a S under a heel.
#AuctionUpdate Après une très belle envolée ´Enlèvement d’une Sabine’ attribué à Antonio Susini, emporte 4,5 M€ et rejoint les collections de @CVersailles. Encore bravo! #RibesCollection pic.twitter.com/DDy6YBCPGF
— Sotheby's France (@SothebysFr) December 11, 2019
2
1584 Sleeping Nymph
2024 SOLD for $ 6M by Christie's
Beside his monumental sculptures Giambologna was also a master of small size bronzes that the Medici were using as diplomatic presents, so spreading the artist's figures throughout Europe. Roman gods in full nudity were his most popular themes from the 1560s.
The sculpture of a sleeping nymph attributed to Giambologna in Florence was recorded in 1584. It features the beautifully elongated nude body of a woman resting on a drapery on a couch, reminding some paintings by Giorgione or Titian and antique marble sculptures of Ariadne. The original cast was made for a de' Medici cardinal.
An example 20.5 cm high and 34.3 cm long may be that original bronze. A vanitas mask of a winged skull is added under the couch. It was sold for $ 6M from a lower estimate of $ 800K by Christie's on January 30, 2024, lot 12.
Drilled holes in the base suggest that another now lost figure was subsequently added. An erotic group of a Venus being watched by a satyr is indeed appearing in a later inventory for the same owner.
Many other copies include the satyr. An early example is recorded in 1587 in collection of the Saxon Elector. Some copies have a bat in place of the skull.
The sculpture of a sleeping nymph attributed to Giambologna in Florence was recorded in 1584. It features the beautifully elongated nude body of a woman resting on a drapery on a couch, reminding some paintings by Giorgione or Titian and antique marble sculptures of Ariadne. The original cast was made for a de' Medici cardinal.
An example 20.5 cm high and 34.3 cm long may be that original bronze. A vanitas mask of a winged skull is added under the couch. It was sold for $ 6M from a lower estimate of $ 800K by Christie's on January 30, 2024, lot 12.
Drilled holes in the base suggest that another now lost figure was subsequently added. An erotic group of a Venus being watched by a satyr is indeed appearing in a later inventory for the same owner.
Many other copies include the satyr. An early example is recorded in 1587 in collection of the Saxon Elector. Some copies have a bat in place of the skull.
1587-1588 Madonna and Child welcoming St. Lucy by Annibale Carracci
2019 SOLD for $ 6.1M by Christie's
The Mannerist art no longer met the needs of popular devotion. The deformed bodies do not capture the attention of the faithful. The Catholic Church, threatened by the competition from the Reformation, wants to progress. The three Carracci will be the main agents of this artistic revival.
They create an academy in Bologna in 1585. Ludovico is the theorist and his cousin Agostino is the teacher. The younger brother of Agostino, Annibale, is a gifted painter who observes his models with empathy and emotion.
In this school which is not a mere workshop, the three founders set to work. The attribution of an unsigned painting to one or the other is sometimes difficult.
They admire the realism of Raphael and Titian, and innovate by bringing the mystical movement and the light. Their transitional role is essential, both to Baroque and to Caravaggio. The Carracci were essentially making frescoes and their works are very rare at auction.
Following the examples by Correggio and Titian, Annibale captures a moment of intimacy shared by the characters in an intense mystical action. An Annunciation 135 x 98 cm in a conventional iconography was sold for $ 3.45M by Christie's on January 30, 2013. It is attributed to Annibale after a visit in Venice ca 1588.
Like the Annunciation, the mystical marriage of St. Catherine and the offering of St. Lucy are non-violent themes that are well suited to express exemplary emotions. St. John the Baptist plays a pleasant role as an accomplice to the Holy Family.
On May 1, 2019, Christie's sold for $ 6.1M from a lower estimate of $ 3M a Madonna and Child welcoming St. Lucy, oil on panel 79 x 63 cm painted by Annibale Carracci around 1587-1588, lot 26.
This composition stages five characters. The faces are young and beautiful. St. Lucy is kneeling to present her eyes on a platter and holds in her other hand the palm of the martyrs. She is encouraged by an angel. The Child and his Mother look at the eyes with a serene curiosity totally devoid of fear. Turned to the public, St. John announces the miracle by pointing the platter with his finger.
Formerly attributed to one of his pupils, this work had been sold for £ 770K before fees by Phillips on December 8, 1987. Re-attributed to the master during that auction with the help of Richard L. Feigen, it is one of four works from his collection which are discussed in the video shared by the auction house.
They create an academy in Bologna in 1585. Ludovico is the theorist and his cousin Agostino is the teacher. The younger brother of Agostino, Annibale, is a gifted painter who observes his models with empathy and emotion.
In this school which is not a mere workshop, the three founders set to work. The attribution of an unsigned painting to one or the other is sometimes difficult.
They admire the realism of Raphael and Titian, and innovate by bringing the mystical movement and the light. Their transitional role is essential, both to Baroque and to Caravaggio. The Carracci were essentially making frescoes and their works are very rare at auction.
Following the examples by Correggio and Titian, Annibale captures a moment of intimacy shared by the characters in an intense mystical action. An Annunciation 135 x 98 cm in a conventional iconography was sold for $ 3.45M by Christie's on January 30, 2013. It is attributed to Annibale after a visit in Venice ca 1588.
Like the Annunciation, the mystical marriage of St. Catherine and the offering of St. Lucy are non-violent themes that are well suited to express exemplary emotions. St. John the Baptist plays a pleasant role as an accomplice to the Holy Family.
On May 1, 2019, Christie's sold for $ 6.1M from a lower estimate of $ 3M a Madonna and Child welcoming St. Lucy, oil on panel 79 x 63 cm painted by Annibale Carracci around 1587-1588, lot 26.
This composition stages five characters. The faces are young and beautiful. St. Lucy is kneeling to present her eyes on a platter and holds in her other hand the palm of the martyrs. She is encouraged by an angel. The Child and his Mother look at the eyes with a serene curiosity totally devoid of fear. Turned to the public, St. John announces the miracle by pointing the platter with his finger.
Formerly attributed to one of his pupils, this work had been sold for £ 770K before fees by Phillips on December 8, 1987. Re-attributed to the master during that auction with the help of Richard L. Feigen, it is one of four works from his collection which are discussed in the video shared by the auction house.
< 1589 Le Beau Sancy
2012 SOLD for CHF 9M by Sotheby's
Nicolas de Harlay, sieur de Sancy, owned two remarkable diamonds. He used them to fuel the greed of kings and queens.
His pale yellow diamond of 55 carats took his name: the Sancy. In 1604 it was bought by James I of England. It joined the Régent in the Louvre.
Henri IV and Marie are a dissimilar couple. The Bearnese peasant seeks to counteract the trends to luxury of his Florentine wife. Perhaps to comfort her after missing the Sancy, Henri buys for Marie the other prestigious gem, also in 1604. This 35-carat white diamond of pear double rose cut was later called the Beau Sancy.
Marie, married in 1600 long after the beginning of Henri's reign, had not yet been crowned, to her dismay. The king finally gave away, again. During the coronation ceremony, on May 13, 1610, the Beau Sancy adorns the crown of the queen. The next day, Henri IV is assassinated.
The Beau Sancy has always remained in royal European families. It was sold for CHF 9M from a lower estimate of CHF 2M by Sotheby's on May 15, 2012, which is CHF 250K per carat. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
Its ancient cut with bulky shapes is outdated, just like the complicated cut of the yellow Sancy based on a shield shape.
The Le Beau Sancy (also known as the Beau Sancy or simply Beau Sancy) is a historic 34.98-carat diamond, cut in a modified pear double rose shape (an early form of rose cut designed to maximize light dispersion and "fire"). It exhibits a faint brown tint (per GIA classification, though appearing near-colorless in many views) and is a classic Golconda diamond from the Kollur Mine near Golconda (Andhra Pradesh, India), the premier source of exceptional diamonds until the early 18th century. Its clarity and purity are exceptional for its age, typical of Type IIa Golconda stones with minimal nitrogen impurities.It is distinct from the larger Sancy Diamond (55.23 carats, pale yellow, also owned by Nicolas de Harlay de Sancy), though both were likely acquired by him and named after him ("Beau" meaning "beautiful" to differentiate the smaller, finer one).
Early History and Acquisition (16th Century)
The diamond was likely mined in the late 16th century (or earlier) in India's Golconda region. It first enters documented history with Nicolas de Harlay, seigneur de Sancy (1546–1629), a French diplomat, financier, and gem enthusiast serving as ambassador to the Ottoman Empire under Henry III. He probably acquired it in Constantinople (modern Istanbul) around the 1580s–1590s.
Facing financial strain while funding armies for Henry III, de Sancy sold both the Sancy and Beau Sancy diamonds around 1589 to settle debts, giving them their enduring names.
French Royal Ownership: Marie de' Medici (Early 17th Century)
In 1604, King Henry IV of France purchased the Beau Sancy for his wife, Marie de' Medici (1575–1642), the wealthy Florentine heiress with a family passion for jewels. Marie set it prominently at the apex of her pearl-and-diamond coronation crown for her crowning at the Basilica of Saint-Denis on May 13, 1610 (just a day before Henry IV's assassination).She wore it as part of her private collection (which included over 11,000 diamonds by inventory). After becoming regent for young Louis XIII, Marie faced exile in 1617 and fled France in 1630, dying in Cologne in 1642 amid debts. The Beau Sancy was sold posthumously in 1642 to cover funeral and other expenses.
Its classic modified pear double rose cut, highlighting its faceted, luminous appearance and pear-like form.House of Orange-Nassau (1642–1702)
Purchased in Amsterdam by Frederick Henry, Prince of Orange (1584–1647) for 80,000 guilders (a bargain, as court jeweler Thomas Cletscher valued it at over 150,000). He intended it as a gift for his daughter-in-law, Princess Mary (daughter of Charles I of England), around her 1641 marriage to William II of Orange.Mary pawned it in 1659 to fund her brother Charles II's restoration to the English throne. After success in 1660, it was redeemed by her grandmother Amalia von Solms-Braunfels. It passed to William III and Mary II (joint monarchs of England after the 1688 Glorious Revolution), becoming part of the British Crown Jewels during their reign. Mary II died in 1694; William III in 1702 childless, reverting the stone to the House of Orange-Nassau.
Prussian Royal Ownership: House of Hohenzollern (1702–2012)
In 1702, Frederick I, newly crowned King in Prussia (1701), acquired the Beau Sancy as the cornerstone of the Prussian Crown Jewels, valuing it at 300,000 Reichsthaler and setting it in a new royal crown to symbolize absolutist power.
It passed through generations:
Consigned by Georg Friedrich, Prince of Prussia (head of the House of Hohenzollern), it was offered at Sotheby's Geneva in the Magnificent Jewels and Noble Jewels sale (lot 595).
Pre-sale estimate: CHF 1.85–3.65 million (about $2–4 million USD).
After an intense 8-minute bidding war among five bidders, it sold on May 15, 2012 (results announced May 16), for CHF 8,565,000 (hammer) plus premium, totaling approximately $9.57 million USD (some reports cite $9.7 million including fees)—far exceeding expectations and setting a record for such a historic rose-cut diamond.
The buyer was anonymous (via telephone), and the stone has remained in private hands since, with no public reappearances or resales reported as of February 2026.
A 2012 viewing was emphasizing its historical mount and sparkle.
Le Beau Sancy embodies over 400 years of European royal intrigue, power symbolism, and gem artistry—surviving wars, exiles, and revolutions while remaining unaltered in its Renaissance-era cut, a testament to early diamond innovation.
His pale yellow diamond of 55 carats took his name: the Sancy. In 1604 it was bought by James I of England. It joined the Régent in the Louvre.
Henri IV and Marie are a dissimilar couple. The Bearnese peasant seeks to counteract the trends to luxury of his Florentine wife. Perhaps to comfort her after missing the Sancy, Henri buys for Marie the other prestigious gem, also in 1604. This 35-carat white diamond of pear double rose cut was later called the Beau Sancy.
Marie, married in 1600 long after the beginning of Henri's reign, had not yet been crowned, to her dismay. The king finally gave away, again. During the coronation ceremony, on May 13, 1610, the Beau Sancy adorns the crown of the queen. The next day, Henri IV is assassinated.
The Beau Sancy has always remained in royal European families. It was sold for CHF 9M from a lower estimate of CHF 2M by Sotheby's on May 15, 2012, which is CHF 250K per carat. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
Its ancient cut with bulky shapes is outdated, just like the complicated cut of the yellow Sancy based on a shield shape.
The Le Beau Sancy (also known as the Beau Sancy or simply Beau Sancy) is a historic 34.98-carat diamond, cut in a modified pear double rose shape (an early form of rose cut designed to maximize light dispersion and "fire"). It exhibits a faint brown tint (per GIA classification, though appearing near-colorless in many views) and is a classic Golconda diamond from the Kollur Mine near Golconda (Andhra Pradesh, India), the premier source of exceptional diamonds until the early 18th century. Its clarity and purity are exceptional for its age, typical of Type IIa Golconda stones with minimal nitrogen impurities.It is distinct from the larger Sancy Diamond (55.23 carats, pale yellow, also owned by Nicolas de Harlay de Sancy), though both were likely acquired by him and named after him ("Beau" meaning "beautiful" to differentiate the smaller, finer one).
Early History and Acquisition (16th Century)
The diamond was likely mined in the late 16th century (or earlier) in India's Golconda region. It first enters documented history with Nicolas de Harlay, seigneur de Sancy (1546–1629), a French diplomat, financier, and gem enthusiast serving as ambassador to the Ottoman Empire under Henry III. He probably acquired it in Constantinople (modern Istanbul) around the 1580s–1590s.
Facing financial strain while funding armies for Henry III, de Sancy sold both the Sancy and Beau Sancy diamonds around 1589 to settle debts, giving them their enduring names.
French Royal Ownership: Marie de' Medici (Early 17th Century)
In 1604, King Henry IV of France purchased the Beau Sancy for his wife, Marie de' Medici (1575–1642), the wealthy Florentine heiress with a family passion for jewels. Marie set it prominently at the apex of her pearl-and-diamond coronation crown for her crowning at the Basilica of Saint-Denis on May 13, 1610 (just a day before Henry IV's assassination).She wore it as part of her private collection (which included over 11,000 diamonds by inventory). After becoming regent for young Louis XIII, Marie faced exile in 1617 and fled France in 1630, dying in Cologne in 1642 amid debts. The Beau Sancy was sold posthumously in 1642 to cover funeral and other expenses.
Its classic modified pear double rose cut, highlighting its faceted, luminous appearance and pear-like form.House of Orange-Nassau (1642–1702)
Purchased in Amsterdam by Frederick Henry, Prince of Orange (1584–1647) for 80,000 guilders (a bargain, as court jeweler Thomas Cletscher valued it at over 150,000). He intended it as a gift for his daughter-in-law, Princess Mary (daughter of Charles I of England), around her 1641 marriage to William II of Orange.Mary pawned it in 1659 to fund her brother Charles II's restoration to the English throne. After success in 1660, it was redeemed by her grandmother Amalia von Solms-Braunfels. It passed to William III and Mary II (joint monarchs of England after the 1688 Glorious Revolution), becoming part of the British Crown Jewels during their reign. Mary II died in 1694; William III in 1702 childless, reverting the stone to the House of Orange-Nassau.
Prussian Royal Ownership: House of Hohenzollern (1702–2012)
In 1702, Frederick I, newly crowned King in Prussia (1701), acquired the Beau Sancy as the cornerstone of the Prussian Crown Jewels, valuing it at 300,000 Reichsthaler and setting it in a new royal crown to symbolize absolutist power.
It passed through generations:
- To Frederick William I (1713).
- To Frederick the Great (1740), who gifted it to his wife Elisabeth Christine, reset in Rococo style as a bouquet jewel (depicted in a 1739 Antoine Pesne portrait as a pink bow centerpiece).
- Remained in Hohenzollern hands for over 300 years, surviving Napoleon's 1806 invasion (hidden), resets as pendants/necklaces for royal brides, and use in coronations (e.g., Queen Augusta's 1861 stomacher for William I).
- Last prominently worn by Augusta Viktoria, wife of Kaiser Wilhelm II.
- After Wilhelm II's 1918 abdication and exile, it stayed with the family estate in Berlin. Hidden during WWII in a crypt, recovered post-war by Allied forces.
- Exhibited publicly occasionally, including a 1972 reunion with the Sancy diamond in Helsinki after 370 years apart.
Consigned by Georg Friedrich, Prince of Prussia (head of the House of Hohenzollern), it was offered at Sotheby's Geneva in the Magnificent Jewels and Noble Jewels sale (lot 595).
Pre-sale estimate: CHF 1.85–3.65 million (about $2–4 million USD).
After an intense 8-minute bidding war among five bidders, it sold on May 15, 2012 (results announced May 16), for CHF 8,565,000 (hammer) plus premium, totaling approximately $9.57 million USD (some reports cite $9.7 million including fees)—far exceeding expectations and setting a record for such a historic rose-cut diamond.
The buyer was anonymous (via telephone), and the stone has remained in private hands since, with no public reappearances or resales reported as of February 2026.
A 2012 viewing was emphasizing its historical mount and sparkle.
Le Beau Sancy embodies over 400 years of European royal intrigue, power symbolism, and gem artistry—surviving wars, exiles, and revolutions while remaining unaltered in its Renaissance-era cut, a testament to early diamond innovation.
Hundred Flowers by Zhou Zhimian
2021 SOLD for RMB 148M by China Guardian
Zhou Zhimian, courtesy name Fuqing, was active around the Jiajing-Wanli transition. Very few biographic informations are known. He specialized in pictures of flowers and of domestic birds including poultry in their occupations, painted in vivid colors in an outlined naturalistic style.
A large scale handscroll in ink and color on paper dedicated to flowers and plants is 17 m long and 32 cm high, with the seals of the Shiqu Baoji and several personal Qianlong seals.
It is recorded as follows in the Shiqu Baoji : One volume of Zhou Zhimian's picture of hundreds of flowers, top grade, with one scale, stored in the imperial study. It is on plain paper, with colored paintings, and is inscribed "Runan Zhou Zhimian" with two seals "Fu Qing" and "Zhou Zhimian" at the bottom.
A collector of the early Qing period appreciated :
"The picture depicts nearly seventy kinds of flowers including orchids, plum blossoms, magnolia flowers, peach blossoms, pear blossoms, magnolias, hydrangeas, chrysanthemums, lotus, narcissus, peonies, ganoderma, and roses.
"There is absolutely no similarity in the mood, color and charm expressed by each kind of flower. The layout of various flowers is clear and bright, as if they have just been picked from the branches.
"The author depicts the vitality and freshness of flowers in full bloom. The seductive charm is vividly displayed. Even if they depict the same kind of flower (such as chrysanthemum), the author uses different expression techniques (such as different colors, postures, etc.) to make them more unique and colorful, each with its own charm."
It was sold for RMB 91M by Poly on December 4, 2010, lot 3656 and for RMB 148M by China Guardian on December 12, 2021, lot 1194. The image is shared by Artnet.
A large scale handscroll in ink and color on paper dedicated to flowers and plants is 17 m long and 32 cm high, with the seals of the Shiqu Baoji and several personal Qianlong seals.
It is recorded as follows in the Shiqu Baoji : One volume of Zhou Zhimian's picture of hundreds of flowers, top grade, with one scale, stored in the imperial study. It is on plain paper, with colored paintings, and is inscribed "Runan Zhou Zhimian" with two seals "Fu Qing" and "Zhou Zhimian" at the bottom.
A collector of the early Qing period appreciated :
"The picture depicts nearly seventy kinds of flowers including orchids, plum blossoms, magnolia flowers, peach blossoms, pear blossoms, magnolias, hydrangeas, chrysanthemums, lotus, narcissus, peonies, ganoderma, and roses.
"There is absolutely no similarity in the mood, color and charm expressed by each kind of flower. The layout of various flowers is clear and bright, as if they have just been picked from the branches.
"The author depicts the vitality and freshness of flowers in full bloom. The seductive charm is vividly displayed. Even if they depict the same kind of flower (such as chrysanthemum), the author uses different expression techniques (such as different colors, postures, etc.) to make them more unique and colorful, each with its own charm."
It was sold for RMB 91M by Poly on December 4, 2010, lot 3656 and for RMB 148M by China Guardian on December 12, 2021, lot 1194. The image is shared by Artnet.
Sketches of Nature by Xu Wei
2017 SOLD for RMB 127M by China Guardian
Xu Wei, a versatile Chinese painter, poet, and playwright, developed a highly expressive and innovative style depicting flowers, plants, and bamboo with explosive energy and mastery of brush and ink. His artistic influences were rooted in the literati painting tradition, particularly the Wu school, which emphasized scholarly individualism and personal expression.
The historical context of the late Ming period—marked by political corruption, national decline, and widespread disillusionment among the scholar-gentry—fostered a restless individualism that profoundly shaped his work, leading to a total rejection of traditional standards in favor of raw, personal expression.
Shen Zhou, a key figure in that school, significantly shaped Xu Wei's approach through his establishment of the "boneless" technique for the painting of flowers, relying on fluid color washes and brushwork without ink outlines. This technique originated from 10th-century court artists.
A handscroll in ink on paper by Xu Wei titled Sketches of Nature is made of five segments in various lengths, respectively 39, 39, 31, 40 and 120 cm, with a height of 29 cm. It does not contain an inscribed date by the artist in any of the poems or inscriptions within its segments. It was sold for RMB 127M by China Guardian on December 18, 2017, lot 453. It is illustrated in second position in the post sale report shared by ChinaDaily.
The historical context of the late Ming period—marked by political corruption, national decline, and widespread disillusionment among the scholar-gentry—fostered a restless individualism that profoundly shaped his work, leading to a total rejection of traditional standards in favor of raw, personal expression.
Shen Zhou, a key figure in that school, significantly shaped Xu Wei's approach through his establishment of the "boneless" technique for the painting of flowers, relying on fluid color washes and brushwork without ink outlines. This technique originated from 10th-century court artists.
A handscroll in ink on paper by Xu Wei titled Sketches of Nature is made of five segments in various lengths, respectively 39, 39, 31, 40 and 120 cm, with a height of 29 cm. It does not contain an inscribed date by the artist in any of the poems or inscriptions within its segments. It was sold for RMB 127M by China Guardian on December 18, 2017, lot 453. It is illustrated in second position in the post sale report shared by ChinaDaily.
Wanli Cabinets
2020 SOLD for HK$ 57M by Sotheby's
The use of monumental cabinets is a Ming innovation from the Wanli period, between 1572 and 1620 CE. The most precious woods are used with a particular care in the choice of colors. The outer and inner walls are coated with the richest materials. The literati like to use them for keeping their books and scrolls.
A pair of two-level cabinets with wardrobe and hatbox was sold by Sotheby's for $ 1.14M on September 22, 2005, lot 359. The lacquer is painted in gold, with pavilions and scholars in idyllic gardens. Each piece measures 330 x 160 x 70 cm and bears the imperial mark of Wanli.
A pair of three-level bookcases without doors was sold by Sotheby's for HK $ 11.8M on April 8, 2009, lot 1623. They are made of nanmu, one of the rarest woods which had the particularity of being impermeable to water. They are lacquered and richly gilded on a deep carving including pairs of dragons in the clouds. Each piece measures 151 x 91 x 50 cm and bears traces of the imperial mark.
A pair of cabinets that can be used as showcases or bookcases was sold for HK $ 57M from a lower estimate of HK $ 4M by Sotheby's on October 9, 2020, lot 75. They are in huanghuali with doors, a row of outer drawers and an upper three-level open compartment. Each piece measures 193 x 141 x 52 cm. They are of Wanli style without having the mark and are neither lacquered nor decorated.
A pair of two-level cabinets with wardrobe and hatbox was sold by Sotheby's for $ 1.14M on September 22, 2005, lot 359. The lacquer is painted in gold, with pavilions and scholars in idyllic gardens. Each piece measures 330 x 160 x 70 cm and bears the imperial mark of Wanli.
A pair of three-level bookcases without doors was sold by Sotheby's for HK $ 11.8M on April 8, 2009, lot 1623. They are made of nanmu, one of the rarest woods which had the particularity of being impermeable to water. They are lacquered and richly gilded on a deep carving including pairs of dragons in the clouds. Each piece measures 151 x 91 x 50 cm and bears traces of the imperial mark.
A pair of cabinets that can be used as showcases or bookcases was sold for HK $ 57M from a lower estimate of HK $ 4M by Sotheby's on October 9, 2020, lot 75. They are in huanghuali with doors, a row of outer drawers and an upper three-level open compartment. Each piece measures 193 x 141 x 52 cm. They are of Wanli style without having the mark and are neither lacquered nor decorated.
Horseshoe Back Folding Armchair
2022 SOLD for HK$ 125M by Sotheby's
Huanghuali and zitan are both belonging to the category of the rosewoods. Extremely heavy and very dense, the zitan allows a deep and very fine carving. It was preferred by the emperors of China for ceremonial pieces.
Highly appreciated by the Ming, the huanghuali is a tropical hardwood that enables to create furniture with bold shapes. Its color varies from reddish brown to golden yellow while its grains may display seductive pseudo-figurative patterns. Huanghuali literally means yellow pear tree flower.
It is believed that less that 10,000 pieces of furniture in huanghuali are still in existence. Its main source was in Hainan Island. The best pieces were made in the late Ming period and in the Ming-Qing transition. Most of them cannot be dated more precisely.
The use of folding seats, easily transformable into sedan chairs. is very convenient for garden or travel. The folding chair is named jiaoyi meaning chair with crossed legs.
The Han already used folding stools. Much later, the quality and beauty of the wood distinguish the elites of higher rank, the huanghuali being the high-end. Such brass mounted furniture is fragile and seats in soft wood did not survive.
In the Ming dynasty, jiaoyi were made in two main forms of the back, the horseshoe and the much rarer square with or without arms.
The very elegant quanyi form of armchair is characterized by its horseshoe-shaped rail that serves altogether as backrest and armrest. The quanyi is better suited than other forms of Chinese armchairs for the creation of folding models, its front rail fitting into the curved support of the arms.
The use of a jiaoyi as an occasional imperial throne is likely under the Ming but was not illustrated until the Qing. A painting by Castiglione features the Qianlong emperor sitting on a folding armchair during a negotiation with Kazakh emissaries.
A jiaoyi of comfortable proportions and simple forms was sold for HK $ 125M from a lower estimate by Sotheby's on October 8, 2022, lot 11. Its size is 71 x 67 x 103 cm.
Its damascened iron strengthening places it in the earliest examples of late Ming horseshoe back folding armchairs. Its elegant plain backrest flanked with carved geometrical borders is unique in that group while the five other surviving examples have dragon or floral carvings.
Highly appreciated by the Ming, the huanghuali is a tropical hardwood that enables to create furniture with bold shapes. Its color varies from reddish brown to golden yellow while its grains may display seductive pseudo-figurative patterns. Huanghuali literally means yellow pear tree flower.
It is believed that less that 10,000 pieces of furniture in huanghuali are still in existence. Its main source was in Hainan Island. The best pieces were made in the late Ming period and in the Ming-Qing transition. Most of them cannot be dated more precisely.
The use of folding seats, easily transformable into sedan chairs. is very convenient for garden or travel. The folding chair is named jiaoyi meaning chair with crossed legs.
The Han already used folding stools. Much later, the quality and beauty of the wood distinguish the elites of higher rank, the huanghuali being the high-end. Such brass mounted furniture is fragile and seats in soft wood did not survive.
In the Ming dynasty, jiaoyi were made in two main forms of the back, the horseshoe and the much rarer square with or without arms.
The very elegant quanyi form of armchair is characterized by its horseshoe-shaped rail that serves altogether as backrest and armrest. The quanyi is better suited than other forms of Chinese armchairs for the creation of folding models, its front rail fitting into the curved support of the arms.
The use of a jiaoyi as an occasional imperial throne is likely under the Ming but was not illustrated until the Qing. A painting by Castiglione features the Qianlong emperor sitting on a folding armchair during a negotiation with Kazakh emissaries.
A jiaoyi of comfortable proportions and simple forms was sold for HK $ 125M from a lower estimate by Sotheby's on October 8, 2022, lot 11. Its size is 71 x 67 x 103 cm.
Its damascened iron strengthening places it in the earliest examples of late Ming horseshoe back folding armchairs. Its elegant plain backrest flanked with carved geometrical borders is unique in that group while the five other surviving examples have dragon or floral carvings.
#AuctionUpdate This weekend, a rare Huanghuali Folding Horseshoe-Back Armchair- offered from the collection of the late Sir Joseph Hotung- soared to $15.9 million. The price is not only a record for a Chinese chair, but is also the third highest sum paid for any chair at auction. pic.twitter.com/J8SNw0F5Gd
— Sotheby's (@Sothebys) October 10, 2022
