Press release -
Queen Alexandrine's Russian Sapphire Tiara Sold for DKK 2 million
Friday afternoon, a historical treasure was up for auction at Bruun Rasmussen in Copenhagen. Queen Alexandrine's Russian sapphire tiara was sold for DKK 2 million.
"The Russian sapphire tiara is by far the most spectacular Russian objet d’art we have ever sold at Bruun Rasmussen. Here beauty and history come together at the highest level. I am overwhelmed by all the attention this piece of jewellery has garnered from our customers and the Danish and international press," says Martin Hans Borg, Bruun Rasmussen's Head Specialist in Russian Art.
The Story Behind the Tiara
In 1898, Princess Alexandrine of Mecklenburg-Schwerin was married to the Danish Crown Prince Christian in Cannes, and the couple were in 1912 proclaimed Queen Alexandrine and King Christian X of Denmark. One of their wedding presents was the beautiful sapphire tiara, which was up for auction this past Friday. They were given the piece of jewellery by Tsar Nikolai II and Tsaritsa Alexandra Feodorovna of Russia.
In 1933, the Danish royal couple passed on the piece of jewellery to their daughter-in-law Hereditary Princess Caroline-Mathilde at her wedding to their youngest son Hereditary Prince Knud at the Fredensborg Palace Chapel. After the Hereditary Princess' death in 1995, the tiara was given to her son Count Christian of Rosenborg and his family, where it has been until today. It was the three daughters of Count Christian, Josephine, Camilla and Feodora of Rosenborg, who sold the tiara at the Russian auction.
Topics
Bruun Rasmussen Auctioneers is one of Scandinavia’s leading international auction houses, and one of Denmark’s oldest. It all started on 6 October 1948, when Arne Bruun Rasmussen conducted the first traditional auction in the saleroom at Bredgade 33 in Copenhagen. Today, Jesper Bruun Rasmussen stands at the helm of the family-run business together with the third generation of the family, his son Frederik and daughter Alexa, and the company’s CEO Jakob Dupont.
In 2004, the first online auction was launched, and today the auction house has expanded to include departments in Copenhagen and Aarhus and representations in Sweden, Germany, England, France, Belgium, Luxemburg, Spain, Italy, Thailand and the US. About 100,000 lots are put up for auction each year at the traditional auctions and daily online auctions. Here you can bid on everything from art, antiques, modern design and jewellery to books, coins, stamps, wine and weaponry.
