Famous Cartier Flamingo Diamond Clip owned by the Duchess of Windsor

It has been said that the Duchess of Windsor had an extensive collection of precious one of a kind jewelry from the most talented jewelers of the day. The Duchess of Windsor was named Bessie Wallis Simpson, who lived from 1896 - 1986. She was an American who married Prince Edward, Duke of Windsor, England's former King Edward VII.

The Duchess of Windsor was a controversial figure thanks to her 2 previous failed marriages to American men. The King was in love and wanted to marry her so he abdicated the throne in December 1936. After abdicating, his title became the Duke of Windsor and he married Simpson six months later. Her title became the Duchess of Windsor.

The Duchess prided herself as being one of the best-dressed women in the world and with that came beautiful accessories and jewelry. She had a very large high-end jewelry collection which was sold at auction in 1987 after her death, for a reported 30 million pounds - $50 million US dollars.

One of her most famous pieces from her collection is the amazing Flamingo Diamond Clip that was designed by Cartier back in 1940. This piece was custom-made for the Duchess. The Flamingo is standing in a customary stance and the body and legs of the bird is covered in Pave Diamonds. The plumage of the bird is in a magnificent colorful collection of rubies, sapphires, emeralds and citrine. The entire design is set in high-end platinum. A truly beautiful piece, fit for a royal with a bit of humor too.

This piece was aquired by a private collector at auction for 1.7 million pounds and has not been seen other that in replicated costume fashion jewelry. The flamingo Diamond Clip is truly a one of a kind piece of famous precious jewelry.

by Kaye Lefier, Contributing Editor at ChasingTreasure.com, online store specializing in wooden jewelry boxes and leather jewelry cases. Kaye is an avid Jewelry Collector and writes about Jewelry and Jewelry Trends.