Auction in Rome with over 110 jewels up for auction on Thursday 9 May at the headquarters of Affide (a company that is part of the Dorotheum group), Palazzo Santacroce Petrignani in Piazza del Monte di Pietà. The overall starting price is 355,450 euros. Highlighted is lot 118 (starting price 7,000 euros): a brooch and a bracelet depicting the basilisk, dating back to the second half of the nineteenth century. The brooch and bracelet, of fine workmanship, are made with the hollow barrel technique in 750 gold, presumably of French manufacture. The brooch presents the shape of the body of the mythological creature twisted on itself, with the head of the rooster finely decorated in the plumage, the eyes embellished with garnets and the blue enamelled pendant metaphor of the terrestrial globe. The bracelet, with naturalistic motifs and embellished with two rooster heads with eyes decorated with emeralds, an open beak and a sharp tongue, evokes the power of his poison.
Among the other lots, 103 stands out (starting price of 23,000 euros), a solitaire ring with a 7.5-carat brilliant-cut diamond in white gold. Lot 100 (starting price of 4,800 euros) is a diamond and emerald necklace made of white gold with diamonds and brilliants of a total of 12.8 carats. The collection is on display at the Affide headquarters from Tuesday to Saturday, from 10:00 to 18:00.
