The Jewels of the Duchess of Windsor

Photo Courtesy of Sotheby’s

This Wednesday, the School of Fashion and the School of Fine Art Sculpture are pleased to co-host the American Society of Jewelry Historians and Carol Elkins, Senior Vice President of Sotheby’s Jewelry Department and guest lecturer of The Jewels of the Duchess of Windsor.

Twenty-Four years after Sotheby’s legendary auction of the “Jewels of the Duchess of Windsor”– still the most valuable single-owner jewelry collection ever sold- these jewels continue to capture our imaginations for a number of reasons. Once worn by a woman who was a leader of fashion and the epitome of elegance and sophistication for her generation and beyond, the collection comprised examples from the great French Maisons such as Cartier and Van Cleef & Arpels, and also included jewels by “cutting edge” designers of the day such as Suzanne Belperron, Fulco di Verdura and David Webb. Personal inscriptions on some of the jewels tell the tale of what was perhaps the greatest love story of the 20th century, the romance that led Edward VII to abdicate the throne of Great Britain for the woman he loved.

WHEN: Wednesday, November 9th, 2011 from 7:00 pm- 8:30 pm

WHERE: Morgan Auditorium, 491 Post Street, San Francisco

Carol Elkins, G.G. (Graduate Gemologist certified by The Gemological Institute of America), is a Senior Vice President of Sotheby’s Jewelry Department. She has been with Sotheby’s for 25 years specializing in antique and period jewels. Carol is a former President of the American Society of Jewelry Historians (ASJH) and the current Director of the ASJH’s Northern California Chapter.