Callas jewels on auction block

GENEVA, Switzerland, Nov. 17 (UPI) -- Diva Maria Callas' jewelry, including an 11.7-carat diamond ring, is being sold in Switzerland, the BBC reported Wednesday.

Sotheby's says the ring, a ruby bracelet, large pearl-drop earrings, and eight other pieces will fetch $1 million at the auction in Geneva. The identity of the seller is being kept secret.

Some of the jewelry was given to Callas by her first husband, Giovanni Meneghini, whom she married in 1949. The opera legend left Meneghini for a rocky relationship with Aristotle Onassis, which ended when the Greek shipping mogul married Jacqueline Kennedy in 1968.

Some who knew Callas are angry about the sale. Film director Franco Zeffirelli says the auction exploits the memory of Callas, who died in 1977.

But Sotheby's says offering the jewelry enables fans to bid on some of her legacy.

"We wanted everybody to have a chance to have a piece of someone who was so liked," said Sotheby's Brett O'Connor.