Property from Oscar winner Jennifer Jones Simon headed for auction

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Jennifer Jones Simon, the Oscar-winning actress who passed away last year at 90, was best known for her roles in such Hollywood classics as ‘Duel in the Sun,’ ‘Love is a Many-Splendored Thing’ and ‘The Song of Bernadette.’

But Jones Simon was also an important force in the museum world, having served as chairwoman of the Norton Simon Foundation Board after the death in 1993 of her husband, Norton Simon, an industrialist and art collector who created the noted museum in Pasadena that bears his name.

Items from Jones Simon’s’ estate — including art work, furnishings, silver, porcelain and couture — are headed to auction at Bonhams & Butterfields. The sales will take place as part of four auctions in L.A. that are scheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 19, Dec. 13 and Jan. 30.

Among the items to be sold from the estate are pieces by the silversmith Allan Adler, sculptor Robert Graham and designer Michael Taylor.

One highlight of the estate is a South Sea cultured pearl and diamond necklace by Van Cleef & Arpels, with an estimated value between $70,000 and $90,000. The necklace was given to the actress by her husband.

Another highlight is a script from ‘Duel in the Sun’ presented to Jones Simon from producer David O. Selznick, who was the actress’ former husband.

— David Ng