In 1936, Constance Prosser Mellon, daughter of New York-based financier Seward Prosser and Constance Barber Prosser, married Richard King Mellon, settling with him near his hometown of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Inspired by his father’s words, “live where you work and work where you live,” Mr. Mellon retained a steadfast dedication to the city throughout his life. Constance shared her husband’s deep love for Pittsburgh, and the couple were leaders of the Pittsburgh “renaissance,” striving to improve their community and the lives of the people who lived there.

The Mellon family’s roots in Pennsylvania date back to 1818 when Richard K. Mellon’s grandfather, Thomas, came to America from Northern Ireland as a young child. The epit.mes of the American dream, Thomas Mellon grew up on a farm, later becoming an attorney and a judge before establishing T. Mellon & Sons Bank with his younger two sons, Andrew and Richard B. Together, the brothers financed the development of Pittsburgh, lending money to fledging businesses and investing in countless industries including aluminum, steel and railroads.

Richard K. Mellon grew up working in the family business, progressively serving as a messenger, assistant cashier and vice president, before being named President of Mellon Bank after the death of his father, Richard B. Mellon, in 1933. In 1937, after the death of his uncle, Andrew W. Mellon, Richard consolidated two of the family’s businesses, Mellon Bank and Union Bank, into Mellon National Bank and Trust Co.

Constance Mellon, an avid outdoorswoman whom one newspaper described as “delicately muscular, sprightly as a nuthatch and darkly beauteous,” fit perfectly into life in Ligonier, PA, where the couple lived. She loved to horseback ride, hunt and fish and was said to be an excellent shot and a formidable opponent on the tennis court. Initially admired for her beauty, Constance quickly became known for her good nature. Nancy Rogers Crozier, sister of television personality Fred Rogers, remarked of her extraordinary generosity: “she was always giving or thinking about giving.” Mrs. Mellon was also known as a gracious employer who knew her staff and their families intimately. Each Christmas, she threw a party for her employees and their children, at which each child was presented with a gift from Santa.

The same year Mr. Mellon assumed responsibility for the family business, he founded the Richard King Mellon Foundation, naming Constance as its Chairman of the Board of Trustees. The Foundation, like the Mellons themselves, focused on regenerating Pittsburgh and the surrounding areas. They donated considerable sums to the University of Pittsburgh, Carnegie Mellon and other higher education institutions in the area. Constance was passionate about education, developing the Valley School of Ligonier near the couple’s country home, Huntland Downs. The Foundation also focused heavily on conservation, influenced by Richard and Constance’s love of the outdoors, and funded countless other projects such as hospitals and medical schools in western Pennsylvania, social services and cultural activities.

The Mellons raised four children together, including Constance “Connie” Barber Mellon, who is remembered as an active patron of the arts. As a child in Ligonier, Connie, like her mother, took an interest in horseback riding. As an adult, Connie lived in Washington, D.C. and New York, and supported many organizations including the National Gallery of Art and the Whitney Museum of American Art.

Sotheby’s is honored to present a selection of jewels from the collects ions of Constance Prosser Mellon and Constance Barber Mellon in our Magnificent and Fine Jewels auctions.