Carlos de Beistegui

Who was Carlos de Beistegui?

Don Carlos de Beistegui y de Yturbe, also known as Charles or Charlie de Beistegui, was an eccentric multi-millionaire art collector and interior decorator and one of the most flamboyant characters of mid-20th-century European life. His ball at the Palazzo Labia in Venice in 1951 is still described as "the party of the century". He was often referred to as "The Count of Monte Cristo".

He is not to be confused with his namesake uncle, whose collection of notable 18th- and 19th-century paintings was donated to the Louvre.