HISTORY

Ansorena begins its story in 1845, when Celestino Ansorena decides to open his jeweller’s workshop in Madrid. Very soon, he is consecrated as one of the most important jewellers of the age and in 1860 is named “Jeweller and diamond merchant to the Royal Household”.

The relationship with the Royal Household becomes closer still with Queen Victoria Eugenia; King Alfonso XIII gave her a gift of a diamond necklace and a high diamond tiara with dynastic fleurs de lis which the English princess would wear on her wedding day, and which we have seen our current Queen wear on numerous occasions. These jewels can be seen in different portraits that were taken of Victoria Eugenia by painters such as Joaquín Sorolla, Fernando Alvarez de Sotomayor or Philip De Laszlo.

It is the year 1974 when Ansorena holds its first Auction; D. Alfonso Mato had a clear vision for transforming his wife, Paloma Ansorena’s, family jewellery business and founding a company of complementary activities as Jewellers and Art Auctioneers – it would be one of the first in this field in Spain.

Ansorena has a valuation and expert assessment service for paintings, jewellery and works of art. Our specialists, a team of historians with extensive experience, carry out assessments for insurance, division of assets, wills, inheritance or valuations for possible sale at Auction. Ansorena also manages Private Sales if desired: an efficient way of both selling and buying relevant pieces, sales have been made successfully to Museums, Institutions or private collections.

In 1986, the Gallery of Contemporary Art was inaugurated, where monthly exhibitions of both consecrated painters and new promises are held.

Specialised in realist paintings and figures that contribute to a wider knowledge of contemporary realist painting, they participate in fairs, such as Art Madrid, and also internationally, such as in Miami, Chicago and London in order to promote their artists.

The firm celebrated 150 years with a relevant exhibition at the National Museum of Decorative Arts in Madrid, where jewels made by the Ansorena workshops during the century and a half of their existence could be contemplated; and in 2010 “Tiaras since 1845” allowed tiaras made by Ansorena since 1845 to be contemplated together for the first time, including the “Fleurs de Lis” tiara from the Royal Household.