This is the second annual appointment for Faraone Casa d'Aste, at the Four Seasons Hotel in Milan, where it will present a careful selection of 20th century jewellery and watches, in front of an audience of bidders made up of dealers, foreign collectors but also, given the more than doubled turnout at the May auction, private individuals. Expectations for this new event are optimistic, given the great value of the lots presented, to the extent that the auction house will try to achieve a sale of more than 80% of the auctioned pieces, as it has in previous auctions. A bet that Faraone Casa d'Aste has always won, presenting a selection of more than 220 lots of high prestige and value, some of which can be purchased with a budget that is in line with that usually dedicated to Christmas presents, but with a decidedly higher perceived value. Iconic jewellery brands such as Cartier, Tiffany, Bulgari, Buccellati, Boucheron and, of course, Faraone, but also anonymous masterpieces such as the Art Deco style necklace in platinum with brilliant-cut diamonds totalling 25 ct, with a central pendant diamond, which can be transformed into a brooch in two versions, with or without a pendant. Also, a Chopard necklace with a 22ct drop diamond, removable, and brilliant-cut diamonds totalling about 60cts; a bracelet, also Art Deco, signed Oscar Heyman, dated 1925, and sold at Christie's in the 1990s for $400,000. Not only jewellery, however, but also cufflinks signed Villa, Sabbadini and Faraone and a selection of prestige watches signed Patek Philippe, Rolex, Breguet, Vacheron Constantin; and a rare Audemars Piguet 'squelette' pocket watch from the 1970s whose movement is enclosed in two sapphire crystals. "We are enthusiastic about the path we have taken and we look forward to this next auction with optimism," says Vittoria Bianchi, Faraone's managing director. "Without being presumptuous, I can say that in just 18 months, on the strength of the results achieved and the service offered, we have achieved the right level of awareness, enriching our catalogue from time to time with objects of great value, specially selected to meet the demands of our clientele. Unlike other auction houses, Faraone Casa d'Aste, having the soul of a jeweller, offers its customers a true 360-degree service on its jewellery, which starts with the valuation, advice on whether to put them up for sale with its own auction house at the best conditions, whether to reassemble them or permute them with a more up-to-date version, or have them purchased directly by the maison in the case of masterpieces, both its own and those of other brands."
