Editor’s Note
The upcoming auction of Heidi Horten’s jewelry collection is poised to become the most valuable in history, potentially eclipsing the $116 million record set by Elizabeth Taylor’s gems in 2011. This sale highlights the enduring and extraordinary market for iconic personal collections.
The jewelry collection of the late Austrian billionaire and art collector Heidi Horten is set to be auctioned, and it is believed to break all previous records. It is also expected to surpass the record set a decade ago by the late actress Elizabeth Taylor. In 2011, the auction of Taylor’s gems earned $116 million.
Heidi Horten possessed a collection of over 700 pieces of jewelry made from gold and other precious stones. According to estimates, the auction will be held at the Four Seasons Hotel des Bergues in Geneva and online in May and October. Auction house Christie’s estimates that the collection is expected to fetch $150 million (9.4 billion rupees).
According to Christie’s, this is the most valuable private jewelry collection ever to come to auction. Christie’s believes it could also break the records of the 2011 Elizabeth Taylor auction and the 2019 auction collection of Maharajas and Mughal Magnificence. These are the only two jewelry collections in the world valued at over $100 million.
Heidi Horten’s collection also includes the ‘Briolette of India,’ a necklace featuring a 90-carat diamond. Additionally, it contains a ruby and a red ring, which are part of a series of modern and decades-old Bulgari creations.
According to Christie’s, the proceeds from the auction will go to the Heidi Horten Foundation.