Jewelry of the Russian Empire’s WEALTHIEST dynasty (PHOTOS)
The Yusupov princes were one of the most influential families in Russia after the Romanovs. They owned lands, palaces, factories, art collections and a huge amount of jewelry.
After the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution, the heir Felix Yusupov fled abroad with his family. He managed to take a few treasures with him.
Prince Felix Yusupov (1887-1967) with his wife, Princess Irina Alexandrovna of Russia (1895-1970) at a private view of Russian art, June 1935.
1.‘La Pelegrina’ pearl
Left: Portrait of Princess Zinaida Yusupova with family pearl by François Flameng. Right: Zinaida Yusupova, 1890s.
In photographs and paintings, Zinaida Nikolayevna Yusupova, Felix's mother and one of the most influential women in St. Petersburg, wears a pendant with a huge, rare pearl. ‘La Pelegrina’, an oval pearl, was one of the family's main heirlooms. It was acquired in 1826 by Prince Nikolai Yusupov and has been passed down through the family ever since.
Felix managed to get it out of Russia and kept it in the family until 1953, when he sold it to Jean Lombard, a jeweler from Geneva. In 1989, the pearl was bought by an anonymous collector at a Christie's for $463,800.
2. Marie Antoinette earrings
Marie Antoinette diamond earrings
The Yusupov collection included several personal items of Marie Antoinette, which they bought at foreign auctions. In the 19th century, these earrings with huge diamonds (14 and 20 carats) were bought in Paris by Tatiana Yusupova, Zinaida's great-grandmother.
In 1928, Felix sold them to the Cartier house and the latter, in turn, sold them to American Marjorie Post, who amassed a huge collection of Russian art. Today, the earrings are kept in the Museum of Natural History at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington DC.
3. ‘Polar Star’ diamond
An 1875 portrait of Princess Tatiana Alexandrovna Yusupova.
Tatiana Yusupova was also the owner of one of the world's most famous diamonds, the ‘Polar Star’, which weighs over 40 carats. In exile, Felix repeatedly pawned the diamond at Cartier until he finally parted with it in 1928. The ‘Polaris Star’ appeared at auctions in 1980 and eventually sold for $5.1 million.
4. Crystal tiara
Felix and Irina's wedding.
In 1914, Duchess Irina, by becoming the wife of Felix Yusupov, also became a niece to Emperor Nicholas II. At the wedding ceremony, she was adorned with a platinum tiara with diamonds and crystals, created by Cartier jewelers. The tiara was found by the Bolsheviks in the Moscow house of the Yusupovs and nothing is known about its further fate.
5. ‘Sunbeams’ Tiara
Soviet officials are investigating Yusupov and Romanovs jewelry, Moscow, 1925.
Felix hid the bulk of his valuables in his house in Moscow after the revolution. The treasure was discovered under the stairs by the Bolsheviks in 1925 during renovations.
The secret room contained seven chests, which contained more than a ton of silver and 13 kilograms of gold. Among the jewelry were 255 brooches, 42 bracelets, 12 tiaras, cups and ladles. Some of these jewels were later shown at an exhibition, but most were sold abroad.
Among these items was probably this platinum and diamond tiara from the Chaumet jewelry house. It was Irina's wedding gift. Initially, the centerpiece of the composition was the ‘Polar Star’ diamond, which was later replaced with a sapphire.
6. Corsage jewelry & earrings with emeralds
Irina received many of her jewelry pieces for her wedding from Felix and his mother Zinaida. Corsage jewelry, which could be worn as both necklaces and brooches, was popular at the time. They also ended up in a hiding place, dismantled and melted down.
7. Ruby tiara
Portrait of Princess Irina Alexandrovna of Russia, wearing one of the Maison Irfé creations , circirca 1924
In exile, Irina and Felix founded their fashion house, ‘IrFe’. Several photos of Irina in dresses of her own work and in a tiara with rubies have been preserved. The fate of the tiara is, however, unknown.
