Although few foresaw the consequences, the opening of the Estates General on May 5, 1789, in Versailles essentially marked the start of the French Revolution.
The sale at Lawrences of Crewkerne on October 12 included a gold and guilloché enamel pendant that marked the event in positive terms.
It carries the inscription Redeunt Saturnia Regna (the kingdom of Saturn returns) and to the reverse Rejouissons nous Le Roi nous est renou (We are pleased the King is returned).
It was offered for sale together with a receipt from Antiques Corner Ltd of Mount Street, London, dated December 20, 1963, for the considerable sum of £110 and correspondence suggesting it was made to mark Louis XVI’s return to Paris from Versailles in 1789. Estimated at £800- 1200, it sold at £2700.
In the pink
A popular entry, selling at £13,500 (estimate £8000-10,000), was a Victorian pink topaz parure comprising a necklace formed with graduated oval-shaped drops, a cruciform pendant suspended from an ornate gold brooch fitting, a pair of drop earrings and a pair of circular earrings.
In a fitted case by Bright & Sons, Scarborough, it came accompanied by a handwritten note reading: Belonged to Mrs Manners Sutton, the daughter of Hanz Mortimer, who on re-marriage became Mrs Jarman. She gave them to Mrs Robert Sutton, mother of Mrs GB Simeon, who was the great grandmother of the present owner.
Lawrences’ specialist Miranda Bingham said: “Pink stones seem to be everyone’s favourite at the moment, and this was an exceptional set – still intact and in its original case.”
Top honours went to a brilliant-cut solitaire diamond ring weighing 3.82ct.
Guided at £30,000-40,000, this attracted some steely bidding before selling at £36,000. “This lot was exceptional not only for its size but also in its colour grading which at E, was only one grading down from the highest colour grading of D,” said Bingham.
