Origin of Name
The double-strand natural pearl necklace consisting
of extraordinary pearls of the highest quality and beauty, is not only a
signature piece of its probable designer, Cartier's, but also of its fashion
conscious wearer Countess Mona von Bismarck, an American socialite and
fashion icon, famed for her beauty and fashion sense, to whose sumptuous
collection, the pearl necklace belonged, and from whom the necklace
derived its name. Mona von Bismarck, who was declared the best-dressed
woman in the world in 1933, by a syndicate of renowned fashion houses in
Paris, built up a valuable collection of fine jewelry, designed by
renowned jewelry houses in the United States and Europe, such as
Cartier's and Tiffany's, and included the famous Bismarck Sapphire
Necklace, incorporating the 98.6-carat cornflower-blue sapphire, she
acquired when she visited Sri Lanka in 1926 during her round-the-world
honeymoon cruise in her millionaire husband Harrison William's
yacht, the "Warrior." The Bismarck Sapphire Necklace is now part of the
collection of jewels and jewelry of the National Museum of Natural
History of the Smithsonian Institution, and is a prominent exhibit in
the Janet Annenberg Hooker Hall of Geology, Gems and Minerals of the
Institution.
Characteristics of
the Pearl Necklace
The two-strand natural pearl necklace is composed 37
pearls in the outer strand and 33 pearls in the inner strand. The two
strands are joined together by a common clasp from behind, which is set
with a single cushion-cut gemstone in the center, which looks like a
diamond, surrounded by a single layer of other 28 tiny diamonds. The pearls
lying along the median line of the necklace are the largest in both
strands, gradually decreasing in size on either side towards the rear.
In the outer strand, 18 pearls are placed on either side of the central
large pearl, making a total of 37 pearls. Likewise in the inner strand,
16 pearls are placed on either side of the central large pearl, making a
total of 33 pearls. The pearls vary in size from approximately 7.7 mm to
15 mm.
Countess Mona Von Bismarck Two-Strand Pearl Necklace
The Clasp of the Countess Mona Von Bismarck Two-Strand Pearl Necklace
A close examination of the two strands show that the
pearls are not all of the same shape, but vary from spherical, to
near-spherical, button and oval shapes. Some of the pearls especially
the larger ones look like they are semi-baroque. The fact that the
pearls in the necklace have a variety of shapes and sizes, possibly
authenticates its natural provenance. The color of the pearls are white,
with a silvery overtone. The luster and orient of the
pearls are characteristic of natural saltwater pearls, associated with
their thick nacre. The surface quality of the pearls appear to be
excellent. A pair of identical almost spherical pearls form the
centerpiece of the ear studs, that are shown on the bottom left-hand
corner of the photograph, and are complementary pieces to the necklace.
History of the Pearl
Necklace
Source of the pearls
in the necklace
Her couturiers
Cristobal Balenciaga and Monsieur de Givenchy
The fashion conscious Countess Mona von Bismarck,
developed a close relationship with world renowned designer Cristobal
Balenciaga, that lasted for almost 30 years. It was reported that on one
occasion when most of her clothes were destroyed in a railroad accident,
she ordered 150 dresses from her couturier Cristobal Balenciaga in one
sitting. Her relationship and dependence on Cristobal Balencia was
clearly demonstrated in 1968, when Countess Mona von Bismarck refused to
leave her bedroom in the villa at Capri for three days, when Cristobal
Balenciaga closed his fashion house.
At the time of closing his shop Cristobal Balenciaga
introduced Countess Mona von Bismarck to Monsieur de Givenchy, the world
renowned French couturier, whose mentor was the great Cristobal
Balenciaga. Apart from Countess Mona von Bismarck, some of the other
high society women introduced by Balenciaga to de Givenchy were, the
Duchess of Windsor, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Grace Kelly, Greta Grabo,
Barbara Hutton, Elizabeth Taylor, Gloria and Dolores Guinness, Babe
Paley, and Marlene Dietrich.
Monsieur de
Givenchy's comments on Countess Mona von Bismarck
On one occasion Monsieur de Givenchy was reported to
have made the following comments about his favorite client Countess Mona
von Bismarck, "She was splendid as could be seen in the portrait that
Dali had painted of her, and had seduced five husbands. She was mad
about pearls and brought them in kilos during cruises in the China Sea
and the ports of Japan. She had two lifts of different speeds installed
in her apartment in Ave de New York; the faster one was for the
domestics so that they could reach the landing before her to open the
door."
The pearls in the
necklace are probably natural South Sea pearls harvested from the pearl
beds of the South China Sea
According to the above account, Countess Mona von
Bismarck had ample quantities of pearls with her, which she had
purchased during her round-the-world honeymoon cruise in 1926, with her
third husband, millionaire Harrison Williams, in his own yacht, the
"Warrior." In all probability the pearls were purchased in the ports of
Southern China and Japan, and were natural South Sea pearls, harvested
from the silver-lipped pearl oyster, Pinctada maxima, occurring naturally
in the pearl beds of the South China Sea. Around this time Japan
had just perfected the technique of culturing Akoya pearls, but
commercial quantities of cultured pearls were yet to appear in the
market.
The multitude of shapes, sizes varying from 7.7 to 15
mm, and the color of the pearls in the necklace, seem to confirm the
opinion that the pearls are natural South Sea pearls. South Sea pearls
are the largest natural or cultured pearls that can be
produced, varying in size from around 7 to 20 mm, with an average size of 13
mm. They can have colors such as white, silver, silver-pink and
silver-white. Round and near-round shaped pearls are very rare. The
common shape is baroque. Other shapes such a button, oval and drop are
also found. The silver-lipped pearl oyster that produces South Sea
Pearls, Pinctada maxima, is one of the largest saltwater pearl oysters
known, that can attain a maximum diameter of 12 ins (30 cm). The larger
gonad in the oyster helps the growth of a larger pearl whether naturally
or cultured.
Countess Mona von
Bismarck - A short biography
How she acquired
the name Bismarck ?
A woman of extraordinary beauty, Mona von Bismarck,
born as Mona Travis Strader in Louisville, Kentucky in 1897, acquired her
more famous second name from her fourth husband, Count Albrecht von
Bismarck-Schonhausen, the grandson of the former German Chancellor Otto
von Bismarck, whom she married in 1954. Being the wife of a count, she
was addressed as Countess Mona von Bismarck.
Mona Von Bismarck
Her early life
Mona's parents were separated when she was just 5
years old, in 1902, and she and her brother were brought up by their
paternal grandmother in Lexington, Kentucky.
Her first marriage
to Henry J. Schlesinger
In 1917, at the age of 20 years, she married her
first husband, Henry J. Schlesinger, who was 18 years senior to her, and
who owned the farm where her father worked. The marriage lasted only 3
years and was dissolved in 1920. Mona gave the custody of her only son
by this marriage, Robert Henry, to Schlesinger, in exchange for $500,000
at the time of the divorce.
Her second
marriage to James Irving Bush
The following year in 1921, she married her
second husband, banker James Irving Bush, reputed to be the "most
handsome man in America" but 14 years her senior. This marriage too was
short-lived, and the couple divorced in Paris, in 1925.
Her third marriage
to Harrison Williams
In 1926, long before her obsession with
haute-couture, she opened a dress shop in New York, in partnership with
her friend Laura Merriam Curtis, the daughter of William Rush Merriam.
It was while in New York she caught the eye of one of the richest man in
America, Harrison Williams, who was also known as "the utilities king of
America." Williams who was a widower, 24 years her senior, was the owner
of an estimated fortune of $600 million. Mona married Williams on July
2, 1926, and this marriage turned out to be the most successful of the
five marriages she contracted.
Harrison Williams
takes his wife on a round-the-world honeymoon cruise in 1926
Soon after the marriage, Williams took his young
bride on a round-the-world honeymoon cruise on his own yacht, the
"Warrior" which was reputed to be the largest and most expensive
pleasure boat in the world at that time. Williams showered his wife with
expensive gifts, whenever the couple disembarked at different ports of
call, during their cruise. It is believed that it was during this voyage
across the seas, that Williams purchased the "Bismarck Sapphire" for
Mona, when they called at the Port of Colombo, in Sri Lanka, and later
acquired large numbers of loose pearls as they chartered the South Sea,
calling at the ports of Southern China and Japan.
The purchase of
luxury mansions in the United States, Paris and Italy
After returning from the honeymoon, Williams invested
heavily on a series of luxury residences in New York, Palm Beach, Paris
and Italy. In New York, he purchased the Georgian style mansion at the
corner of Fifth Avenue and 94th Street, designed by Delano and Aldrich
in 1915. Mona engaged the services of Syrie Maugham for the decoration
of the mansion. They also purchased an estate in Bayville, Long Island,
known as Oak Point, situated along Bayville Avenue. The next mansion
they purchased was on Worth Avenue, in Palm Beach. Among the overseas
properties they purchased were, several apartments in Paris, and the
famous Villa il Fortino overlooking Marina Grande, in the Italian island
of Capri, which once belonged to Augustus Caesar, and later to Emperor
Tiberius.
Mona's obsession
for haute-couture
Her obsession for haute-couture which began during
her life with Harrison Williams, was a direct result of the extravagant
life style she led, with unlimited resources at her disposal. It was
then that she established a working relationship with couturier
Cristobal Balenciaga, that lasted for almost three decades. In the year
1933, Mona was declared "The Best Dressed Woman in the World" by a
syndicate of renowned fashion houses of Paris, that included Chanel,
Molyneux, Vionnet, Lelong and Lanvin. The same title was subsequently
awarded to the Duchess of Windsor in 1934 and Elsie de Wolfe in 1935.
Harrison Williams died in 1953. Mona's marriage to Harrison Williams was
the most successful of all her marriages, and lasted 27 years.
Mona's fourth
marriage to Count Albrecht von Bismarck in 1954, and Mona acquires her
popular name Mona von Bismarck
Mona was now 56 years old, but looked much younger,
and continued to play her role as trend setter in the world of fashion,
in Paris. One year after Harrison William's death, she took her fourth
husband, Count Albrecht von Bismarck, a longtime friend of the family,
an interior decorator by profession and the Grandson of the former
German Chancellor, Otto von Bismarck. The couple spent most of their
time in Paris, and lived at an apartment in the prestigious Hotel
Lambert, and later in a mansion at 34, Avenue de New York, and also at
Villa il Fortino, in Capri. This marriage too proved to be a successful
one and lasted for 16 years, until the death of Count Albrecht von
Bismarck in 1970.
Mona takes her
fifth and last husband Umberto de Martini
Mona was now 73 years, and probably wished to remain
single for the rest of her life. However, another man had been longing
to enter her life in her twilight years. This was none other than
Albrecht von Bismarck's personal physician, Dr. Umberto de Martini, who
was 14 years her junior, and the only husband she married, junior in age
to her. In 1979, Martini died in a car accident, and it was only after
his death she realized that Martini had in fact married her only for her
money and position.
Mona bequeaths her
estate to a foundation to be set up after her death
In 1967, Mona von Bismarck donated the sapphire and
diamond pendant necklace that incorporated the 98.6-carat
cornflower blue Sri Lankan sapphire, to the National Museum of Natural
History of the Smithsonian Institution, and the Institution named the
necklace "Bismarck Sapphire Necklace" in her honor. She bequeathed her
estate that included her valuable collection of jewels and jewelry, to a
foundation that was to be established after her death. Countess Mona von
Bismarck died in 1983 in Paris. Her body was flown to the United States,
where she was interred in Long Island, by the graveyards of her former
husbands, Harrison Williams and Albrecht von Bismarck.
Sale of the Mona von
Bismarck two-strand pearl necklace at Sotheby's Geneva, in 1986.
In May 1986, the part of her estate that included her
valuable jewels and jewelry came up for auctions at Sotheby's in Geneva,
and included the Mona von Bismarck two-strand pearl necklace. A pre-sale
estimate of $139,000 to $195,000 was placed on the necklace. However,
the necklace surpassed the expectations of the auctioneers, selling for
more than double the upper estimate at $410,000. In accordance with her
wishes, her estate was used for the establishment of the Mona Bismarck
Foundation. The foundation which was registered in the State of New
York, has a Paris Cultural Center, and an exhibition space located
opposite the Eiffel Tower. The Foundation, while promoting artistic,
scientific, literary and educational activities, had also organized over
70 international exhibitions, over the last twenty years, that were open
to the public free of charge.
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Related :-
1)
The Bismarck Sapphire Necklace
References :-
1) South Sea Pearls - Pearl-Guide.com
2) Mona von Bismarck - From Wikipedia, the free
encyclopedia
3) The Filson Historical Society website
4) The French Gentleman - Features - Autumn Winter
2008, www. ponytailmagazine. com
