{"id":65059,"date":"2021-01-26T19:29:00","date_gmt":"2021-01-26T18:29:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.monaco-tribune.com\/?p=65059"},"modified":"2021-01-26T19:58:58","modified_gmt":"2021-01-26T18:58:58","slug":"its-quite-an-operation-behind-the-scenes-at-a-monte-carlo-jewellery-auction","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.monaco-tribune.com\/en\/2021\/01\/its-quite-an-operation-behind-the-scenes-at-a-monte-carlo-jewellery-auction\/","title":{"rendered":"\u201cIt\u2019s quite an operation\u201d: behind-the-scenes at a Monte-Carlo jewellery auction"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The latest Artcurial jewellery auction is an array of Cartier necklaces, six-figure rings, and Monaco residents queuing-up to get their hands on them. But what does auctioning millions-worth of jewellery actually look like? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are places in Monaco where a single step can take you back in time. One such place is the H\u00f4tel Hermitage in Monte-Carlo. Here, the Belle-\u00c9poque \u2013 those thirty years that made Monte-Carlo the gambling capital of the world \u2013 still lives in the stained-glass domes and gilded stuccos. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the viewing room of the H\u00f4tel Hermitage, however, guests are concerned with another kind of dream of luxury. Below the gilded ceilings, hundreds of jewels, from gold cuffs to diamond and sapphire sets are exhibited in velvet-lined glass displays. To the newcomer, the necklaces, earrings, bracelets, and rings are as dazzling as the crown jewels. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

How do you transport jewellery worth millions?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Behind such an impressive scene is an intricate security network that starts long before the auction week. \u201cAll the jewellery that is consigned in Monaco is first sent to Paris to be photographed and is then exhibited for Artcurial\u2019s Parisian clientele,\u201d explains Louise Gr\u00e9ther, Director of Artcurial Monaco. The lots, which have a combined worth of several million euros, are transported to the French capital thanks to a specialised transport company.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The jewellery doesn\u2019t actually stay in Monaco overnight<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

After the jewellery has been photographed and exhibited in Paris, the lots travel back to Monaco. During the auction week, jewels are on show from Sunday to Tuesday, and they are auctioned off on Wednesday. Despite Covid-19, Louise Gr\u00e9ther says that all has gone smoothly, apart from a last-minute 7pm curfew that forced Artcurial to move back viewing hours by an hour. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Every evening during the auction week, the transport company takes the items away to a secret location, bringing them back the next morning. \u201cThe jewellery doesn\u2019t actually stay in Monaco overnight \u2013 actually I have no idea where it stays,\u201d admits Louise Gr\u00e9ther. \u201cMoving the items back and forth is quite an operation. It requires an awful lot of concentration, because we cannot lose or damage any pieces. They have to be packed correctly every evening. For our staff, the manual labour involved is extraordinary,\u201d says Louise Gr\u00e9ther.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Who owns this jewellery?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The highlight of this year’s Artcurial jewellery auction<\/a> is the \u201cproperty of a lady\u201d collection, which includes a 1925 Cartier necklace with coral beads sculpted \u201c\u00e0 la chinoise\u201d, a Cartier choker made out of 12 diamond-encrusted panthers and a yellow diamond ring worth between 380,000 and 420,000 euros. \u201cAll the pieces in the collection were bought by a man for his wife,\u201d explains Louise Gr\u00e9ther. \u201cHe had fabulous taste, you can tell that every piece was offered with great passion and love for her.\u201d  <\/p>\n\n\n\n