Book Review: Christie’s The Jewellery Archives Revealed

Have you ever dreamed of going into the vaults and archives of the infamous, world-renowned auction house Christie’s?! I feel like I dream about that on a daily basis and although I’ve never gotten my chance, author Vincent Meylan may hold the key to unlocking that door with his latest book called Christie’s The Jewellery Archives Revealed. In it, he chronicles some of the most headlining jewelry auctions–from British Royalty jewels, to Elizabeth Taylor’s collection, and everything in between. Mr. Meylan had insider’s access to the Christie’s archives to research for this book, where he brings hundreds of color illustrations, including more than 100 original documents reproduced just for the pages of this tome. 

The history behind Christie’s is even more extensive than what I thought–with their first sale being on December 5, 1766! It is interesting to read that during this revolutionary time, the events that took place may have actually benefited Christie’s because so many people of royalty were being sent to the guillotine. Chapter two has quite the attention-grabbing title of “Murdered Queens.” The extensive stories behind each historical piece are quite fascinating, and I am thoroughly enjoying the paintings of the royals as well as photos of the jewels which illustrate the book. It gives you insight into European royalty as well, including history and intriquing stories behind many of their ill-fated lives. 

Chapter 11 is a favorite, titled “Diamonds are Christie’s Best Friends,” it chronicles a few of the top-selling, biggest, rarest and most stunning diamonds to ever grace Christie’s auction floor. This chapter opens up about how mysterious and extensive their diamond sales were over the past couple centuries. The earliest diamond consignments reveal not much on where they came from…and in the same breadth, where did they end up once sold?  A trio of rubies, for example, went up for auction in 1891. The weight and rarity of any one of these, if they were to resurface, would shatter any record ever set. So astonishing.

Aside from the last chapter, it is noteworthy to check out the Appendix. It lists significant names of pieces/collections that went up for auction by year, starting with the year 1767. It is a great, quick reference as well as a “who’s who” amongst those who sold pieces through Christie’s.

The auction world is quite mysterious, legendary and totally unique. It is one of my favorite parts of my jewelry hobby. This book encompasses all this and more, and should you find yourself daydreaming of all the jaw-dropping jewels that once passed through Christie’s auction house–you might want to buy yourself this book to know exactly how incredible they truly are!

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