Brooches Owned by Queen Mary, Mamie Eisenhower, and JFK Are Now up for Grabs
If you’ve ever wanted to own a piece of jewelry with historic or celebrity ties, now is your chance.
The New Orleans–based antiques dealer M.S. Rau has just added a suite of such items to its website, with prior owners including Shirley Temple, John F. Kennedy, Mamie Eisenhower, and Queen Mary.
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The standout may be from the royal—a natural pearl and diamond pin that’s on offer for $468,500. That piece was a gift to Queen Mary from the then Duke and Duchess of Windsor. It features a rare 14 mm natural pink conch pearl flanked by an 11 mm natural white South Sea pearl and a 12 mm natural iridescent Tahitian pearl. The gems are set in platinum and surrounded by 1.3 carats of carré cut diamonds.
If presidential provenance is what you’re after, M.S. Rau is also selling a donkey brooch owned by JFK for $39,850. The 14-karat yellow-gold donkey sports blue sapphire eyes and sits on freshwater pearls. A symbol of Kennedy’s Democratic Party, the pin is accompanied by a 1994 letter from Evelyn Lincoln, Kennedy’s personal secretary, explaining its significance. The brooch was gifted to JFK by his brother-in-law Peter Lawford, and it was intended for Jackie Kennedy. Instead, it sat in the top drawer of JFK’s desk until he was assassinated in 1963.
Elsewhere, two pieces from Mamie Eisenhower are being offered up: An Art Deco brooch ($128,500) highlights a 15.3-carat emerald-cut pink tourmaline, surrounded by 6.6 carats of French-cut aquamarines and 4.5-carats of old-, single-, and baguette-cut diamonds. And a textured 14-karat gold locket ($9,850) is engraved with “M.D.E.” on the front. Inside, there’s a photomechanical reproduction on gold of Eisenhower’s husband, President Dwight D. Eisenhower.
Last but not least, M.S. Rau has acquired a gold necklace and bracelet suite that belonged to the performer Shirley Temple. The 18-karat yellow-gold set ($34,500) sees the necklace decked out with 0.2-carats of diamonds and white-gold details, with the bracelet made to match.
These sorts of items may come up for auction every so often, but it’s rarer that you’re able to simply buy them on the spot. M.S. Rau has now made that a reality.
Click here to see all images of the M.S. Rau jewels.
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