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Maharaja Of Patiala's 1,400-Piece Dinner Sells For $3m
BBC NEWS, INDIA
July 5, 2013: A dinner set commissioned by the former Maharaja of Patiala has been sold at auction for $3m (£1.9m). An anonymous collector purchased the set, Christie's in London said.
The set weighs nearly 500kg (1,100lb). Every single piece in the magnificent 1,400-piece silver-gilt set has elaborate decorations.
Maharaja Bhupinder Singh commissioned the dining set in 1922 for a visit to Patiala by the Prince of Wales, later King Edward VIII.
Each piece comes with "a scroll and foliage border above cast and chased panels of animals, separated by cast daggers, variously engraved or cast with coat-of-arms, crown and initials" and is being sold as part of the auction house's "Exceptional Sale", Christie's said in a statement to the BBC.
The exquisite banqueting service gives an insight into the maharaja's colorful and lavish lifestyle. He was the first Indian to own an aircraft and was also an avid and early motorcar enthusiast who owned and traveled in a motorcade of up to 20 Rolls Royce cars. The maharaja was also the captain of the Indian cricket team.
