Christie’s set to host $25m auction By Maha Obeid on Monday, March 3 , 2008
The charm, style and elegance of legendary Egyptian singer Um Kulthum will be rediscovered when one of her most precious items of jewellery goes under the hammer next month. Um Kulthum was born to a poor family in a village in the Nile Delta of Egypt and carved her name in history as one of the most famous Arab singers of the 20th century.
Her repertoire included more than 300 songs with themes ranging from love to nationalism to religion. The majority were sung in colloquial Arabic; although some were in classical Arabic, written by famous poets.
She was born in 1904 and died on February 4, 1975. Fans all over the world mourned her death and more than four million people attended her funeral, which was the second largest in Egyptian history after President Gamal Abdel Nasser. Um Kulthum was a favourite of Nasser and presidents around the world, including Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, the late ruler of the UAE.
Sheikh Zayed, the founder and first president of the UAE, presented the singer with a magnificent natural pearl necklace. It is now in the public eye because the singer’s family have decided to sell it. Christie’s will auction it on April 29 at the Contemporary Jewels and Watches sale at Jumeirah Emirates Towers in Dubai.
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LONDON (AP) — An antique necklace with some 1,888 pearls that belonged to Egyptian music icon Umm Kulthoum will go up for auction next month, Christie's said Monday.
The nine-row necklace is expected to fetch $120,000 when it goes for sale in Dubai, the auctioneer said.
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