Summary

AP-APTN-1830: US Taylor Jewels Wednesday, 7 September 2011 STORY:US Taylor Jewels- REPLAY +4:3 Early look at Liz Taylor's jewels due to be auctioned LENGTH: 02:21 FIRST RUN: 1630 RESTRICTIONS: AP Clients Only TYPE: English/Nat SOURCE: AP TELEVISION STORY NUMBER: 704446 DATELINE: New York - 6 Sep 2011/ File LENGTH: 02:21 AP TELEVISION - AP CLIENTS ONLY SHOTLIST FILE: London, UK - 24 May 2000 ++4:3++ 1. Elizabeth Taylor arriving on red carpet for event at which she was honoured with British Film Industry Lifetime Achievement Award 2. Close of Taylor's jewellery New York, USA - 6 September 2011 ++16:9++ 3. Wide collection of jewellery 4. Close up of tiara 5. Wide shot of jewellery collection 6. Rack focus of tiara, given to Taylor by Mike Todd 7. Wide of Rahul Kadakia, head of Christie's jewellery department, arranging the collection 8. Medium shot of necklaces including the La Peregrina pearl necklace 9. Close up of Bulgari emerald bracelet 10. Close up of the Taj Mahal diamond 11. SOUNDBITE (English) Rahul Kadakia, head of Christie's jewellery department: "We've priced the collection at 30 (m) million dollars as a whole. What it is going to make, well this we'll know when it's December. The magic of Elizabeth Taylor will speak that evening and the days after, and that's when we will really know what the collection is worth, and what the appeal of one of the greatest human beings who has lived is worth." 12. Tight diamond bracelet 13. Medium group shot of jewellery 14. Elizabeth Taylor diamond being modelled on hand (33 carat - purchased in 1969 at auction for 300-thousand dollars) 15. Wide collection of jewellery 16. SOUNDBITE (English) Rahul Kadakia, head of Christie's jewellery department: "She really loved all of this jewellery. It was a way of life for her. Jewellery was her. And she looked at everything every day, and she decided this is what I am going to wear today. Was it the Peregrina pearl necklace? Was it the Elizabeth Taylor diamond? Was it the Mike Todd suite of ruby jewellery? Was it the Bulgari emerald jewellery - of which the broach was purchased by Richard Burton when they first got married in 1964?" 17. Close up Bulgari emerald necklace FILE: Cannes, France - 23 May 2003 ++4:3++ 18. Various of Taylor wearing Bulgari necklace being interviewed on red carpet STORYLINE Elizabeth Taylor dazzled the world with her luminous beauty, lavish lifestyle - and an unquenchable passion for diamonds and jewels that was fuelled by the great loves of her life. The Hollywood star, who died in March at age 79, amassed one of the foremost jewellery collections in the world - which is coming up for auction in its entirety at Christie's in New York in December. It's an extraordinary collection of rubies, diamonds, emeralds and sapphires in intricate and bold designs - and the stories behind them are as priceless as the gems themselves. Among the standouts is the 16th-century La Peregrina, one of the largest and most symmetrically perfect pear-shaped pearls in the world, which Richard Burton purchased for Taylor in 1969 as a Valentine's Day gift. The two had met in Italy on the set of the 1963 film "Cleopatra" and married for the first time in 1964. Once part of the crown jewels of Spain, the pearl later passed into the hands of Joseph Bonaparte, Napoleon III and the Duke of Abercorn. When it came up at auction in New York, Burton snapped it up for 37-thousand dollars, beating out the underbidder, a member of the Spanish royal family. Cartier later created a ruby and diamond necklace from which the pearl was suspended, a design that was inspired by the famous Velazquez portraits of Spain's Queen Margarita and Queen Isabel wearing the pearl as a necklace. La Peregrina is estimated to fetch between two and three (M) million dollars. Burton was enamoured of historical pieces and in 1972 purchased the famous 17th-century Taj Mahal diamond pendant for Taylor's 40th birthday. The transaction took place at John F. Kennedy International Airport because the couple didn't have time to run into the city before catching a plane, according to Christie's. The heart-shaped diamond is associated with one of history's greatest love stories. It belonged to Emperor Shah Jahangir, who had the diamond inscribed with his wife's name "Nur Jahan". He later passed the stone on to his son, Shah Jahan, who built the Taj Mahal in memory of his wife Mumtaz, who died in childbirth. Cartier later recreated the diamond's original silk cord as a gold rope-like necklace set with rubies and diamonds. The necklace has a pre-sale estimate of between 300-thousand and 500-thousand dollars. One of the most extravagant gifts Taylor received from Burton was the asscher-cut 33.19-carat diamond set in a platinum ring. Known as the Elizabeth Taylor Diamond, Christie's says its size and clarity makes it a perfect gem. Burton purchased it in 1968 at a New York auction for 305-thousand dollars. At the December sale, it's expected to fetch between 2.5 and 3.5 (M) million dollars. Eighty of the most iconic pieces will be sold on the evening of 13 December. The following day, 189 more gems will be sold. About 500 pieces of Taylor's costume jewellery will be sold online at the same time. Christie's also will be selling the star's haute couture and ready-to-wear fashion, accessories, 20th-century decorative arts and film memorabilia from her Bel Air home on 14-16 December. Details have not been released. Christie's says the top 80 jewellery pieces will be shipped prior to the auction to Geneva, Paris, Hong Kong, Dubai and Los Angeles; many of them also will be shown in London and Moscow. The entire collection will be exhibited from 3-10 December at Christie's New York galleries. A portion of the proceeds from the exhibition admissions and publications related to the sales will be donated to The Elizabeth Taylor AIDS Foundation. Proceeds from the auctions will go to Taylor's estate. Christie's predicts that the entire jewellery collection will fetch at least 30 (M) million dollars. Clients are reminded: (i) to check the terms of their licence agreements for use of content outside news programming and that further advice and assistance can be obtained from the AP Archive on: Tel +44 (0) 20 7482 7482 Email: infoaparchive.com (ii) they should check with the applicable collecting society in their Territory regarding the clearance of any sound recording or performance included within the AP Television News service (iii) they have editorial responsibility for the use of all and any content included within the AP Television News service and for libel, privacy, compliance and third party rights applicable to their Territory. APTN (Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.) AP-NY-09-07-11 1431EDT