Belle Époque devant-de-corsage brooch by Cartier Paris, 1912. © courtesy of christie's

Almost 400 treasures from the Al Thani collection, one of the world’s finest collections of Indian jewellery, jewelled objects and historic gemstones, will be auctioned at the Maharajas & Mughal Magnificence sale at Christie’s New York on 19 June.

The selection charts the magnificent history of Indian jewellery from the Mughal emperors who ruled India for more than three centuries, through to modern day masterpieces by JAR and India’s finest contemporary jeweller, Bhagat. “This is as major a collection as we’ll ever see at auction.” says Rahul Kadakia, Christie’s international head of jewellery.

A diamond and emerald bead brooch by Bhagat. © courtesy of christie's

Sale highlights, which will be unveiled for the first time today at Christie’s in London, demonstrate how precious adornment of oneself and one’s possessions was a way of life to India’s royalty and nobility, a signifier of their considerable wealth and power. “From the moment you were born, you were adorned in jewellery and gems,” says Kadakia.

Just a glimpse of the Nizam of Hyderabad's magnificent late 19th century bib-style diamond and emerald necklace would have left onlookers in no doubt of the fact he was one of the wealthiest men of his time. Equally resplendent is a feathered turban ornament made for the Maharaja of Nawanagar in 1907, which features more than 150 carats of diamonds. It was last sold at auction for $1.8m by Christie’s in 2010. A dagger with a carved jade hilt is just one of many jewelled objects in the landmark sale which Mr Kadakia expects will appeal to collectors from around the globe. It once belonged to Shah Jahan, the 17th century Mughal emperor who built the Taj Mahal.

The Nizam of Hyderabad Necklace from the collection of the Nizams of India, diamonds and emerald, circa 1850. © courtesy of christie's

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The auction also explores the rich creative dialogue between east and west. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, maharajas commissioned the great European jewellery houses to reset their family gems in the western style. An exquisite 1931 Cartier ruby, diamond and pearl choker was commissioned by Maharaja Bhupinder Singh of Patiala. He was one of the house’s most important Indian clients in the 1920s and 1930s, often travelling to Paris with trunks full of precious gems from his treasury for Cartier to set in new creations.

Another Cartier piece in the sale was not made for an Indian prince but, like many Art Deco jewels, was inspired by Mughal architecture. A beautiful 1922 platinum belt brooch set with diamonds, emeralds and sapphires recalls the ornate archways present in Mughal palaces. It once belonged to Sybil Sassoon, Marchioness of Cholmondeley, and daughter of Sir Edward Sassoon and Baroness Aline de Rothschild. She wore it for both the coronation of King George VI in 1937 and the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953.

India’s rich gem tradition is at least in part thanks to its wealth of natural resources. A rivière necklace (circa 1890), which once belonged to the Nizam of Hyderabad, features almost 200 carats of diamonds from the Golconda mine in India, the earliest diamond mine known to man. The Mirror of Paradise, just one of several historic gemstones in the sale, is a 52.58 carat, rectangular-cut diamond, also from Golconda, that last sold at auction in 2013 for $10.9m.

Golconda Diamond Rivière Necklace, circa 1890, from the collection of the Nizam of Hyderabad. © courtesy of christie's

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Sheikh Hamad bin Abdullah Al Thani of Qatar was inspired to begin amassing the collection after seeing the 2009 Maharaja exhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum. He has since acquired more than 6,000 bejewelled objects and artworks, of which the Christie's sale features less than 10 per cent from across the entire collection. Highlights, many of which are included in the June auction, have been exhibited at prestigious museums around the world over the last five years, including the V&A, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Grand Palais in Paris and the Palace Museum in Beijing. The remaining pieces will go on permanent display at the Hôtel de la Marine in Paris next year.

A diamond, cocholong, sapphire and titanium brooch by JAR. © courtesy of christie's

After the sale highlights are unveiled in London, they will go on an international exhibition tour to tempt collectors in Shanghai, Geneva and Hong Kong before reaching their final destination of Christie's in New York, which hosted the record-breaking sale of Elizabeth Taylor’s jewels in 2011. Whether this sale of Indian treasures will break records is anyone's guess but Mr Kadakia believes he will never see the like of it again. "This is living history," he says.