Princess Margaret's dazzling diamond and sapphire brooch is set to reach £20,000 at auction - after its royal owner quadrupled the value

  • The brooch was owned by the princess from the age of 18 until her death 
  • Jewellery maker remains a mystery despite extensive research
  • It is now being sold through auctioneers Woolley & Wallis in Salisbury

A diamond and sapphire brooch owned by Princess Margaret for most of her life is expected to reach up to £20,000 at auction.

The dazzling piece of jewellery was owned by the Queen's younger sister from 1948 when she was 18 until her death in 2002 aged 71.

The early Art Deco pavé-set diamond bow is decorated with openwork sapphire and diamond wheel motifs and calibré-cut sapphire detail.

A diamond a sapphire brooch owned by Princess Margaret is expected to reach £20,000 at auction. The early Art Deco pavé-set diamond bow is decorated with openwork sapphire and diamond wheel motifs and calibré-cut sapphire detail

A diamond a sapphire brooch owned by Princess Margaret is expected to reach £20,000 at auction. The early Art Deco pavé-set diamond bow is decorated with openwork sapphire and diamond wheel motifs and calibré-cut sapphire detail

It is mounted in platinum and gold, was made in around 1920 and is about 2 inches wide. Although it is an exquisite piece, it is the fact that it belonged to the princess which has quadrupled the value.

Princess Margaret, the second daughter of Prince Albert Duke of York, later King George VI, and Elizabeth, Duchess of York, was a hugely popular member of the Royal family, both in the UK and abroad.

She began her public duties at the age of 18 when she already owned the glamorous piece of jewellery and wore it for a royal engagement.

The hefty price tag is in part due to the fact that the princess regularly featured in best dressed lists in the 1950s and 60s.

Margaret is said to have first been seen wearing the brooch at the age of 18 when she met members of the New Zealand Women's Association in London. Pictured: Margaret at a young age 

Margaret is said to have first been seen wearing the brooch at the age of 18 when she met members of the New Zealand Women's Association in London. Pictured: Margaret at a young age 

The piece of jewellery was owned by the Queen's younger sister from 1948 from the age of 18 up until her death in 2002 aged 71

The piece of jewellery was owned by the Queen's younger sister from 1948 from the age of 18 up until her death in 2002 aged 71

The royal was well known for her love of jewellery and amassed an impressive collection of inherited heirlooms, pieces that were presented to her both personally and for state occasions, and items she commissioned from British craftsmen.

She was known to have owned this brooch from at least 1948 and was pictured wearing it, aged 18, in November of that year when she met members of the New Zealand Women's Association in London.

But it is not known who gave her the brooch and the maker also remains a mystery.

It was one of 800 items sold off by her estate in 2006, four years after her death, when it was bought by the current owner.

It is now being sold through auctioneers Woolley & Wallis in Salisbury, Wiltshire.

Jonathan Edwards, head of jewellery at the auction house, said: 'Princess Margaret loved jewellery and she had the most wonderful collection.

Jewellery collector Margaret in later life
Despite extensive research both the brooch's maker and who gifted it to the royal remain a mystery

Despite extensive research both the brooch's maker and who gifted it to the royal remain a mystery. Pictured: Jewellery collector Margaret in later life (left) and the brooch (right)

It is now being sold through auctioneers Woolley & Wallis in Salisbury, Wiltshire and being owned by a princess is said to have increased its value by £16,000

It is now being sold through auctioneers Woolley & Wallis in Salisbury, Wiltshire and being owned by a princess is said to have increased its value by £16,000

'This brooch is a beautiful thing and it's an interesting piece itself - in between Edwardian and Art Deco - but it's Princess Margaret that makes it valuable.

'If it came over the counter it would probably be worth about £4,000, it has four times that value because of its connection to the princess and its incredible provenance.

'It's stamped on the back with her cipher, all her jewellery was stamped in this way. It's a little script M with her coronet on top of it.'

Edwards added that after extensive research the origin of the brooch remains a mystery to the experts.  

'We have researched it and haven't been able to pin down a maker. We've found similar ones, and it is almost certainly French, but we haven't been able to narrow it down more than that.

'It's a very beautiful brooch so I'm sure she would have worn it lots and it's incredibly collectible. As soon as anything royal comes up that adds huge interest to buyers.'

The brooch will be sold at the Salisbury salerooms on April 28.

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