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When Hancocks London acquired what it later came to call the Anglesey tiara, the new owners had no idea of the piece’s history, said the managing director, Stephen Burton.
The stunning circa 1890 tiara, which is enjoying top billing among jewelry displays in Maastricht, the Netherlands, at the European Fine Art Fair, known as TEFAF, includes a graduated row of more than 100 carats of diamonds. The row can be detached, via small screws, to form a rivière necklace.
“The reason we bought it is that it is the Rembrandt of tiaras,” said Mr. Burton, who runs the longtime family business with his wife, son and daughter. “It’s a magnificent jewel by itself and doesn’t need any provenance to shine as a beautiful piece of jewelry.”
Only after the purchase, for an undisclosed price last summer, did the jeweler trace the tiara to Marjorie Paget, the sixth Marchioness of Anglesey, after spotting a photograph by Cecil Beaton of her wearing it at King George VI’s coronation in 1937.
Hancocks also has linked the combination headpiece and necklace to Henry Cyril Paget, the fifth Marquess of Anglesey. Lord Anglesey, who died in 1905 at age 29, was a local eccentric known for his flamboyant, costumed stage productions at his Welsh estate, Plas Newydd, as well as for his tendency to drape himself in extravagant pieces of jewelry.
Is there evidence that the “Dancing Marquess” actually wore the tiara?
“We don’t know that 100 percent,” Mr. Burton said. “What we do know is that he wore a huge quantity of jewelry because he had a huge quantity of jewelry. This tiara is in fact a family piece that predates him, so he would have inherited it from the fourth marquess.”
The tiara is among about 100 pieces that Hancock will display at the fair in Maastricht. The jeweler will be joined by a dozen other antique jewelry exhibitors and six contemporary jewelers.
Among the contemporary jewelers is a new face at TEFAF, the designer Viren Bhagat, also representing the fair’s first exhibitor from India.
The presence of Mr. Bhagat at TEFAF gives collectors and the public a rare opportunity to meet the understated superstar, who is considered by David Bennett, worldwide chairman of Sotheby’s International Jewelry Division, to be one of the most significant jewelry designers working today.
“I’ve known Viren for many years and whenever I get to Mumbai, I consider it a pilgrimage to see him and the latest things he’s designing,” Mr. Bennett said. “He has the most extraordinary sensibility. Everything is unique and new and fabulous.”
Mr. Bhagat, a fourth-generation jeweler, now runs his business with his sons, Varun, 34, and Jay, 30. About 60 unique pieces are designed each year in Mr. Bhagat’s five Mumbai workshops, and the only retail outlet that carries his work is FD Gallery in New York.
Bhagat designs are notable for an emphasis on precious stones, diamonds, natural pearls, emeralds, rubies and sapphires, with very little metal involved.
“That’s something unique to us and something we’ve worked very hard to establish,” said Mr. Bhagat, who also is recognized for creatively combining elements of Eastern and Western traditions.
“I’m a great admirer of Indian jewelry; it’s my heritage,” he said. “But I’m also a fan of fusion of the East and West, so I’ve taken a bit of both. The design is very Indian, but the way it’s manufactured is very Western.”
Bhagat’s star TEFAF entry is a sapphire and diamond ring set in platinum, with a mechanism that makes the band flexible, allowing it to adjust to the size of the wearer. A similarly designed ruby and diamond ring from Bhagat sold at a Sotheby’s auction in 2017 for $10.5 million.
The entry point for Bhagat’s jewelry is $125,000 to $150,000, but a special line is being designed for TEFAF that will start at $40,000 to $50,000, Mr. Bhagat said. Those pieces will use semiprecious stones, such as opal, jade, turquoise and lapis.
“It’s our intention to make some things a little more accessible, especially in new circles and shown in a new environment,” said Mr. Bhagat, whose sons were instrumental in deciding to show at TEFAF and in the lower-priced collection.
“The business has changed with every generation,” he said. “With my sons, they have a fresher and younger point of view. They have their own set of ideas.”
