【Geneva, Swit】The Magic of Vanderbilt Jewels Reborn in a Historic Auction

The jewels of Gladys Vanderbilt have reappeared in Geneva in a historic collection seeking a new owner.

High society is once again setting its sights on one of the most emblematic families of the American Gilded Age: the Vanderbilts. The auction house Phillips will conduct an extraordinary sale that will bring together some of the most legendary pieces that belonged to Gladys Moore Vanderbilt Széchenyi.

On November 10, 2025, the collection of Gladys Vanderbilt’s jewels will be presented at the Hôtel Président. She was an heiress of the Gilded Age who, after her marriage to Hungarian Count László Széchenyi, became a countess and a prominent figure in European aristocracy.

The auction will include a total of twelve objects, among them an emerald and diamond bow brooch, a diamond comb, a Cartier vanity case with Gladys’s monogram, and watches that belonged to the countess.

Benoît Repellin, Global Head of Jewellery at Phillips, has described these pieces as “the purest embodiment of Gilded Age elegance.” And he is not exaggerating. Each gem revives the memory of a time when luxury was not an accessory, but the essence of identity.

Two undisputed protagonists stand out in the auction: a Cartier tiara, originally designed as a wedding ornament that Alice Vanderbilt gave to her daughter for her wedding and later transformed into a brooch.

This piece, with detachable lilies, was designed to transform with diamonds or amethysts depending on the occasion. Today, it reappears in the form of a brooch with a 4.55-carat pear-shaped diamond, with an estimated value close to $150,000.

The centerpiece of the auction will be the Vanderbilt Sapphire, a brooch containing a 42.68-carat gem, sugarloaf cut, of exceptional royal blue purity, set by Tiffany & Co. and surrounded by old-cut diamonds.

Of Kashmiri origin, this stone is considered practically unrepeatable in today’s market, raising its estimated value to between $1 and $1.5 million.

Gladys Vanderbilt (1886-1965) was the daughter of Cornelius Vanderbilt II and Alice Gwynne, granddaughter of the legendary William Henry Vanderbilt.

Like many heiresses of her time, she was one of the so-called “dollar princesses”: American women who, in the early 20th century, linked family fortunes with European noble titles.

Her wedding to Count Széchenyi, celebrated in Manhattan with unprecedented luxury, sealed the union between American wealth and European aristocracy.

Owner of The Breakers, the iconic summer mansion in Newport, Gladys not only preserved the architectural legacy of the Vanderbilts but also knew how to deploy the language of power through jewelry.

In European courts and at historic events such as the coronation of Emperor Charles I of Austria-Hungary in 1916, the jewels she wore were authentic declarations of status.

The history of the Vanderbilts inspired novels, series like *The Gilded Age*, and numerous legends about excess, rivalry, and splendor. Today, with this auction in Geneva, that legacy comes back to life.