Ifill bought a silver wire necklace for $15 at a Brooklyn flea market, only to discover it was a 1940 Alexander Calder piece that fetched $267,750 at Christie's 2013 auction.
She kept the piece in her dresser for years, wearing it sparingly. When she saw a Calder jewellery exhibit at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, experts confirmed its provenance.
Calder, famed for mobiles, also crafted wire jewellery in the 1920s and 1930s, often gifting them to friends. The pieces function as kinetic sculptures, shifting with the wearer’s movements.
Christie's First Open sale of Post‑War and Contemporary Art, held on September 26‑27, 2013, featured the necklace as lot 107. It sold for $267,750, including buyer's premium, beating the $200,000‑$300,000 estimate.
The find underscores how everyday objects can carry hidden value when provenance is revealed. Ifill, who had worn the necklace only four or five times, now sees a $252,735 gain after the sale.