Jackie Kennedy
London—Two faux pearl necklaces and a pair of faux diamond and pearl earrings once worn by Jacqueline Kennedy when she was first lady sold Sunday for £51,600 (about $80,000), according to auction house Bonhams which sold the jewelry.
While the actual value of the costume jewelry is only several hundred dollars, experts say the pieces sold for an estimated 10,000 times their value thanks to the continued cachet the former first lady has as a fashion icon.
Jean Ghika, a Bonhams jewelry expert said, “It’s fair to say that 99.9% of the value is because they belonged to Jackie Kennedy.”
The triple strand necklace, believed to be one of three the first lady wore, sold for £30,000 at Bonhams’ Pioneers of Popular Culture sale at the inaugural Vintage at Goodwood Festival, near Chichester, West Sussex. The earrings fetched £15,600 and a single strand, simulated pearl necklace went for £6,000.
The jewelry was sold by an unidentified British collector after first being purchased at Sotheby’s 1996 auction of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis’ estate.
The Bohams auction was the culmination of the first Vintage at Goodwood Festival, a three-day event celebrating all that is best about British popular culture in music, fashion, art, design and film.
