14 DAY TRIAL // An amazing jewelry collection, almost one century old, was discovered in a house attic in Northern Scotland. The owner had no idea of what the content of the old attic suitcase was and with the missing key she decided to throw it away, but thanks to her pressing curiosity, she couldn't throw it away before opening it.
The woman, who prefers to remain anonymous, force opened the box and revealed an amazing collection of diamond earrings, necklaces, rings, emeralds and other amazing hand-made unique pieces. The astonishing finding belonged to the owner's grandmother and two maiden aunts, according to Daily Mail.
The crocodile-skin case had been forgotten in the attic for almost 70 years and the elderly owner assumed it was holding worthless old documents. But in fact, the case was holding 22 pieces of jewelry estimated at $90,000 (€66,500) that will be auctioned at Bonhams' Edinburgh auction room this week.
Before the sale, the woman who discovered the pieces agreed to display the findings for the first time since the World Wars. The collection's most valued item is a pair of single-stone diamond earrings that weigh almost seven carats and have an estimated value of $24,500 (€18,135).
Other amazing items included a 19th century enameled Indian necklace with a pendant holding the footprint of Goddess Vishnu, and a cameo brooch depicting the goddess of flowers, besides other items adorned with pearls, diamonds and precious gems, a few of them featuring some Austro-Hungarian marks.
The elderly woman who discovered the unique jewelry was the grand-daughter of an Austrian high-society lady and a Scottish officer in the Highland Light Infantry. The couple traveled the world after getting married and had the opportunity to encounter such amazing pieces of jewelry.
“They are all very high quality and wonderful examples of their type. And because they have been in this protected environment for so long they are in absolutely super condition,” said Clare Blatherwick, Bonhams' Head of Jewelry in Scotland. Luckily for the owner, her curiosity saved the dazzling jewelry collection from ending up in the trash.