Vienna 1900: An Imperial and Royal Collection

Vienna 1900: An Imperial and Royal Collection

View full screen - View 1 of Lot 1084. Rare and attractive diamond rivière necklace, attributed to Köchert, circa 1900.

From the Collection of Archduchess Maria Immaculata of Austria-Tuscany, Duchess of Württemberg (1878-1968)

Rare and attractive diamond rivière necklace, attributed to Köchert, circa 1900

Auction Closed

November 7, 12:14 PM GMT

Estimate

270,000 - 450,000 CHF

Lot Details

Description

From the Collection of Archduchess Maria Immaculata of Austria-Tuscany, Duchess of Württemberg (1878-1968)


Rare and attractive diamond rivière necklace, attributed to Köchert, circa 1900


Designed as a graduated line of collet-set cushion-shaped diamonds, length approximately 440mm, unsigned, all thirty-nine collets detachable.

Emperor Franz Joseph I (1830-1916)

Archduchess Maria Immaculata of Austria-Tuscany, Duchess of Württemberg (1878-1968)

This diamond rivière necklace corresponds to the rivière purchased by Emperor Franz Joseph at Köchert in October 1900 as a wedding present for Archduchess Maria Immaculata of Austria-Tuscany (1878-1968) on the occasion of her marriage to Robert, Duke of Württemberg (1873-1947). At the time the necklace contained thirty-eight collets so presumably one has been added at a later date.


Monday, October, the 29th, 1900

A wedding at the imperial court


The wedding was to take place at noon in the Hofburg Chapel, but the ceremonies had begun several days before. On Friday afternoon, two special trains had arrived in Vienna. The first one came from Stuttgart and carried the official representative of His Majesty King Wilhelm II of Württemberg: his cousin from Silesia, Duke Nicholas of Württemberg. The second one, even more prestigious, came from the Gödollo imperial station, near Budapest. It was the personal train of his Majesty Emperor Franz Joseph. The emperor had come especially to attend the wedding of his cousin: Maria Immaculata Rainera of Austria-Tuscany.


   Certainly the archduchess was the youngest daughter of a younger prince member of a minor branch of the Imperial House. But she was an orphan. Her father, Archduke Carl Salvatore had died in 1892. Her mother, Princess Maria Immacolata of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, had died in January 1899. Since that last death, Rainera, as she was called, had lived with her godfather and guardian: Archduke Rainier, the richest and most respected man in the imperial family. He was the only member of the imperial family who was allowed to present himself in front of the emperor at any time without an audience.


   For nearly a week, the young Archduchess's "Trousseau" had been on display in three salons of Archduke Rainier's palace. The Wiener Salon Blatt in its edition of Sunday October 28 gives a very accurate description of the jewels. They were exhibited in two glass showcases. Place of honor had been given to the emperor's gift: A rivière of 38 diamonds acquired by his majesty from the court jeweler, Köchert. Then came a tiara set with rubies and diamonds. It was the gift of Archduke Rainier and his wife and it was also from Köchert. Several pieces of jewelry, also signed Köchert, came from the inheritance of the young bride's mother: a necklace of five rows of pearls (lot 1081), a bracelet of pearls, rubies and diamonds (lot 1078) and a tiara of pearls and of diamonds (Lot 1083). The groom, Duke Robert of Württemberg had also offered a rivière of diamonds to his future wife.


   On Saturday October 27 the official court ceremonies began. At noon, the young archduchess took the oath of renunciation of her rights to the hereditary possessions of the Habsburgs. This was the tradition for an alliance with a foreign prince. In the evening, the Emperor gave a family dinner at the Hofburg. On Sunday evening, in the Redoutensaal of the Imperial Palace, 700 guests were invited to a gala dinner followed by a concert. The menu in French began with a Chambord soup and ended with cherry ice cream. The concert alternated works by Léo Delibes, Tchaikovsky, Brahms and Grieg.


Then, finally, on Monday the 29th at 12, the wedding ceremony started and Her Imperial and Royal Highness Archduchess Maria Immaculata Rainera of Austria-Tuscany became her Royal Highness, Duchess Robert of Württemberg. Duke Robert would die in 1947, but Maria Immaculata Rainera would live until the very respectable age of 90, in 1968. Many Jewels from her Trousseau are presented in this catalogue.


Vincent Meylan