The Most Expensive Antique Chandeliers Sold at Auction
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____#10 As part of the “À Travers les Styles: A Private Collection of Silver, Paintings and Furniture” auction at Sotheby’s Paris on December 15, 2010, a __pair of Italian gilt-metal and rock crystal chandeliers__sold for $677,203—more than twice the valuation. The circa-1700-to-1799 chandeliers from Genoa were estimated at $201,249 to $335,415.
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#9__An__ormolu 32-light chandelier by Pierre-Philippe Thomire garnered $691,442 at a November 5, 2014, sale for Christie’s Paris. The circa-1800 gilt-bronze-and-crystal fixture sold short of a projected $940,000 to $1.3 million.
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#7__This__imperial neoclassical 18-light chandelier is believed to be from Russia’s Pavlovsk Palace, specifically from Empress Maria Feodorovna’s bedroom. The lot sold for $815,025 at a Christie’s Paris sale on November 17, 2010, after being valued at $271,223 to $406,834.
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__#8__A piece that was once part of the collection of Jean Bloch (1886–1942)—a French industrialist who made his fortune in kitchen and bath fixtures—sold for $773,369 at Christie’s London’s December 6, 2012, auction. The Louis XIV ormolu six-light chandelier attributed to André-Charles Boulle was estimated at $642,673 to $964,010.
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#6__This__early-19th-century Russian __ormolu and cut-glass chandelier__was part of Christie’s Monaco’s April 28, 2000, sale of the collection of fashion designer Karl Lagerfeld. The lot earned a remarkable $869,313 at auction, after being estimated at $110,599 to $138,248.
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__#5__A lot from the Alberto Bruni Tedeschi Collection brought in slightly more than $1 million. The large gilt-bronze and cut-crystal chandelier, circa 1830, was valued at $196,889 to $393,778. It was sold on March 21, 2007 at Sotheby’s London to benefit the Virginio Bruni Tedeschi Foundation.
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__#4__An__imperial chandelier,__made by Napoléon’s furniture supplier, was also sold as part of the Alberto Bruni Tedeschi Collection at Sotheby’s. The circa-1812 piece was estimated at $492,222 to $984,445 but earned $1.3 million.
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#3__The third most expensive chandelier ever to sell at auction was this__eight-light gilt-bronze chandelier attributed to André-Charles Boulle. The circa-1701-to-1705 lot sold at Sotheby’s London on July 5, 2006, for $1.47 million. It was estimated at $1 million to $1.48 million.
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______#2 A varnished and gilt-bronze cut-glass chandelier__from the Collection of Baron de Redé, from the Hotel Lambert sold for $1.7 million at Sotheby’s Paris on March 16, 2005, making it the second most expensive chandelier ever sold at auction. The circa-1745-to-1749 piece was estimated at $1.3 million to $2.7 million.
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#1__The most expensive chandelier ever sold at auction was a__Givenchy Royal Hanover German silver eight-light chandelier by William Kent. It earned more than $9 million at Christie’s London’s July 7, 2011, sale. The piece, designed in 1736, was valued at $4 million to $5.7 million.
