$7.95 Million Natural-Pearl Drop Earrings Once Part of French Crown Jewels

M.S. Rau of New Orleans has listed a pair of natural-pearl-and-diamond drop earrings with documented Bourbon-Orléans descent for an asking price of $7.95 million, a figure often rounded in headlines to $8 million. The listing is described as circa 1790 and is presented with what the dealer says are supporting archival materials including a family tree, an SSEF certificate that cites a painting of Queen Amélie wearing the earrings, and a letter from Jean d’Orleans accompanied by photographs of Princess Isabella wearing them.

The earrings are identified as large natural pearls at the center with diamonds that were added later by the Parisian house Mellerio dits Meller. Specific measurements, pearl dimensions, and diamond carat weights are not provided in the listing excerpts; the SSEF certificate and other documents are reported to be included with the lot and may contain technical gemmological data. Bill Rau, third-generation owner of M.S. Rau, said, “These extraordinary natural pearl and diamond earrings, worn by Queen Amélie—the last Queen of France—are among the most important works we have ever been able to present.”

Provenance as presented by M.S. Rau traces the pair through the Bourbon-Orléans line, and the lot reportedly includes a Jean d’Orleans letter detailing ownership by his grandmother Princess Isabella plus photographs. M.S. Rau has said it has known of the earrings for many years and that bringing them to market involved a “rare convergence of timing and good luck,” per the dealer’s account in the listing materials.

The listing is framed against the broader history of the French crown jewels: after Napoleon III’s abdication and the establishment of the Third Republic, the government auctioned almost the entire collection in 1875 to prevent a royalist resurgence, though Robb Report notes that a small selection of jewels remained with private members of the royal family — the present listing is presented as one such retained item. The SSEF certificate is cited specifically as linking the earrings to a painted portrait of Queen Amélie.

Market context on natural pearls underscores the asking price: a Marie Antoinette pearl-and-diamond pendant sold for $36 million at Sotheby’s in 2018, and a different pair of natural pearl earrings once owned by Empress Eugénie fetched $3.3 million at Doyle New York on April 28, 2014 — that Doyle lot’s pearls measured 23mm by 13mm and carried documented U.S. provenance through collectors such as George Crocker and the Rogers family.

To verify value and authenticity before pursuing a purchase, request copies of the SSEF certificate, the Jean d’Orleans letter and photographs, the family tree, any Mellerio dits Meller invoices or archival records for the diamond work, and high-resolution images. Asking price: $7.95 million. Have you handled a royal-provenance pearl piece or sold one yourself? Tell us what you got.