Marie Antoinette

8 Stories

Necklace Linked to Marie Antoinette's Downfall Sold at Auction

Jewels in diamond-studded necklace may have been involved in 1785 scandal

(Newser) - "There is obviously a niche in the market for historical jewels with fabulous provenances," Sotheby's jewelry specialist Andres White Correal said after a diamond-studded necklace with a possible link to Marie Antoinette's downfall sold for more than double the pre-sale estimate. Some of the approximately 500...

Marie Antoinette's Bracelets Sell for Astronomical Amount

They went for $8.34M at auction

(Newser) - A pair of diamond bracelets that once belonged to Marie Antoinette, the famed wife of French King Louis XVI who met her fate at the revolutionary guillotine, sold for $8.34 million on Tuesday, the AP reports. The opulent bracelets, among the rare pieces of jewelry from the ill-fated French...

Science Solves Mystery in Marie Antoinette Love Letter

Imaging technology reveals words the recipient scribbled over

(Newser) - “Not without you.” “My dear friend.” “You that I love." Marie Antoinette sent these expressions of affection—or more?—in letters to her close friend and rumored lover Axel von Fersen. Someone later used dark ink to scribble over the words, apparently to dampen...

In Walls of Chapel, a Chilling Find on French Revolution
Archaeologist Makes Chilling
Find in Walls of French Chapel
in case you missed it
Jul 4, 2020 7:00 AM CDT

Archaeologist Makes Chilling Find in Walls of French Chapel

Guillotine victims apparently buried there, not in the catacombs as believed

(Newser) - The administrator of a historic chapel in France noticed the walls were looking odd in places, and he called in an archaeologist to take a professional look. The reason for the anomalies is a dark one, dating back to the French Revolution: It appears that up to 500 victims of...

Have $1,600 for a Tree? France Is Calling

Marie Antoinette's private garden is finally being revived

(Newser) - Marie Antoinette's reign ended badly—the queen of France was guillotined for treason in 1793—but her taste in gardening lives on, the New York Times reports. A private garden designed to her liking is being rebuilt at Versailles, and after years of debate, caretakers have decided her taste...

Jewels of France's Last Queen Hit Auction Block

Ring, pearl necklaces to be sold Thursday in Switzerland

(Newser) - Let them eat their hearts out. Jewels that once belonged to Marie Antoinette, the extravagant and doomed last queen of France, are set to hit the auction block as part of what Sotheby's calls "one of the most important royal jewellery collections ever to appear on the market....

A Beheaded Queen's Jewelry Is Up for Grabs

Pearls worn by Marie Antoinette that haven't been seen in public in 200 years are up for auction

(Newser) - Sotheby's says it will be auctioning off a set of natural pearls that once belonged to the famed—or infamous—French queen Marie Antoinette, and that haven't been seen in public for centuries. The sale of "Royal Jewels From the Bourbon-Parma Family" is set to take place...

Marie Antoinette's Shoes Sell for $57K

White silk mules were expected to fetch far less

(Newser) - A pair of shoes believed to be Marie Antoinette's were expected to auction for about $6,500—but they brought in $57,000, AFP reports. The white silk mules, which feature tricolor ribbons, were sold at an auction of French Revolution artifacts in Toulon, France. The queen may have...

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