Antique Tiaras - Prices Soar

An antique diamond tiara once owned by Colorado rancher and socialite Tweet Kimball has sold for $824,000 -- nearly three times its pre-sale estimate.

The Bonhams New York sale continues a recent trend of high bidding for tiaras at least 100 years old that speak of more glamorous times for royalty. The 1905 Belle Époque tiara features a stunning 7-carat pear-cut center diamond and more than 25 carats of diamonds set in platinum. It was estimated at $300,000 prior to the sale.

Worthologist Maggie Turnipseed attributed the high price to a combination of the tiara’s intrinsic appeal and the motivations of some well-heeled bidders.

“Every little girl dreams of being a princess, but only a few people can afford to buy a real royal tiara,” she said. “While I did not see that this tiara was attributed to specific royalty, we can presume that it did once belong to a woman of substance and great importance.”

The tiara’s previous owner, Tweet Kimball, owned the Cherokee Ranch outside Denver, which included a castle-like home. Her foundation auctioned some of her jewelry to maintain the castle and her collection of antique furniture and rare paintings.

Turnipseed notes that tiaras have been selling for far above their pre-sale estimates in recent years.

In 2006, Sotheby's privately sold a 1906 Cartier diamond tiara to a European buyer for $390,729, which was more than twice its low estimate.

Also in 2006, Christie's auctioned a tiara that the late Princess Margaret wore in her 1960 wedding to Lord Snowdon. Known as the Poltimore Tiara, it was created by Garrards in 1870 for Lady Poltimore, the wife of the second Baron Poltimore. Christie’s placed a high estimate of $553,000. It was sold to an Asian private collector for $1.7 million dollars.

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