Christie's Acknowledges Nazi Link to $150m Collection
May 02, 23
(IDEX Online) - Christie's has acknowledged the Nazi link to a collection of jewelry that is expected to sell for a record $150m in Geneva this month.
The 700-plus items belonged to Heidi Horten, whose first husband Helmut Horten founded the eponymous chain of German department stores.
It has since been established that Jewish businessmen in the 1930s were forced to sell him their own department stores to him at "ridiculous" prices, or be sent to concentration camps.
Christie's original publicity material for The World of Heidi Horten: Magnificent Jewels auction made no mention of this.
It has since inserted a paragraph that reads: "Mr. Horten, her first husband, passed away in 1987, leaving a significant inheritance to Mrs. Horten, the source of which is a matter of public record.
"The business practices of Mr. Horten during the Nazi era, when he purchased Jewish businesses sold under duress, are well documented."
Heidi Horten (nee Jelinek) was 19 when she met her first husband Horten, who was more than 30 years her senior.
He died in 1987, and in 2020 Forbes estimated that her personal fortune at $3bn. She died last June, aged 81.
The collection includes a 90-carat Briolette of India diamond necklace by Harry Winston (estimate $10m), and the 25-carat Cartier Sunrise Ruby and diamond ring (estimate $15 to $20m) and a three strand natural pearl necklace with a cushion-shaped, 11-carat pink diamond clasp, also by Harry Winston (estimate $7m to $10m).
The collection represents the most valuable jewelry collection ever to be auctioned, surpassing those of Elizabeth Taylor and Qatar royal family member Sheikh Hamad Bin Abdullah Al Thani, according to Christie's.
Pic courtesy Christie's shows a 90-carat Briolette of India diamond necklace by Harry Winston