The Kevin Stone & Mark Diamond Collection

An Eye for the Extraordinary
The Kevin Stone & Mark Diamond Collection

A New Orleans Legacy

For nearly three decades, Kevin Stone Antiques was a Magazine Street staple, offering an inimitable level of quality and distinction in antiques, fine art, decorative objects and interior decorating services.

Relationships were central to the success of the beloved and revered shop, which differentiated itself with a world-class, service-minded and personal approach that attracted prominent clients from around the world.

At the heart of the shop’s reputation for excellence were Kevin Stone and his partner, Mark Diamond. Together, the avid collectors and antique dealers have built a formidable career and a vibrant life centered on their shared passion for historic preservation, decorating and antiques.

Stone and Diamond’s extraordinary personal collection of hand-selected pieces reflect some of the very best in collecting, mirroring the exemplary eye that made their beloved New Orleans shop a one-of-a-kind.

New Orleans Auction Galleries is honored to present part one of this extensive collection from the world of Kevin Stone and Mark Diamond, featuring selections from Kevin Stone Antiques.

A Dynamic Duo

Stone and Diamond credit their success to hard work, the importance of which both learned at an early age and the tenet that fueled their respective journeys until meeting each other in 1999.

Raised on a farm in the small, rural town of Altheimer, Arkansas, Stone acquired a taste for the antique business at his mother’s garage sales, where at just 11 years old he discovered his innate talent for closing a sale. Even as a kid, Stone was also keenly attuned to quality versus quantity, a value he proudly shared with his mother.

With big dreams and the desire to live in a big city, Stone left the University of Arkansas after one year to enroll in Mrs. Wade’s Fashion Merchandising School in Dallas in 1982. The school, Stone would very soon discover, was a sham, but his love for merchandising had been sparked. He would go on to work at an apparel mart before joining a women’s wholesaler, where even as a part-time employee, he became the brand’s most successful salesperson.

In Dallas, Stone continued building on his knowledge and love of history, antiques and design and, eventually, pursuing a career in interior design, something he had learned a great deal about from his former partner, designer Milton Kent, with whom Stone owned Kent Stone Antiques in North Henderson Avenue in Dallas for nearly 20 years.

A wildly successful era for antiques, these years were marked by tremendous growth for Stone, who served as an expert for the now defunct Southern Accents magazine, acquired an enviable Texas client base, and opened the first Kevin Stone Antiques on Magazine Street in 1986. The shop would be one of the first on Magazine Street to offer high-quality antiques.

In 1997, Stone set his eyes on New Orleans full-time with the goal of slowing down, having left Dallas after dissolving his business with Kent Stone Antiques. His chapter in the Crescent City, however, would turn out to be Stone’s most significant one yet.

It was Maria Hardeveld, a fellow New Orleans antiques dealer with a shop next to Stone’s, that would introduce him to the person who would help take his life and his career to the next level.

Diamond grew up in Kenner, Louisiana, just outside of New Orleans, and spent every Sunday at his family’s farm in Mississippi, where he was happiest surrounded by animals. His mother, an avid collector of country antiques, also instilled in him a love for antiques and design.

During his undergraduate years, Diamond worked at a local veterinarian’s office and eventually applied to veterinary school at Louisiana State University. His first year would prove to be challenging for personal reasons, however, and he ultimately pursued and earned his MBA from Tulane University. After more than a decade in hospital administration, Diamond sought to charter a new course and pursue one of his passions: become a chef or an antique dealer.

Meeting Stone, he says, was serendipitous. That evening, he told one of his friends, “I met the man I’m going to spend the rest of my life with.” The rest, as they say, is history.

The couple’s shared vision for excellence would become their guidepost. Combining their strengths – Stone’s tasteful eye and Diamond’s business acumen – they continued to build on the success of Kevin Stone Antiques, traveled to more than 30 antique shows per year and even renovated 15 properties together (Stone has renovated 38 houses in all).

Stone and Diamond set Kevin Stone Antiques apart by being fully present in their business. From purchasing containers and estates in Europe to offloading the trucks in New Orleans and meticulously inspecting each piece, they were involved every step of the way. This personal attention to detail would further cement Kevin Stone Antiques as the go-to shop for discerning clients in search of truly exceptional antiques.

Such a formidable career has awarded Stone and Diamond with some extraordinary experiences, one of their most cherished being their appearance on the French television series “Des Racines et des Ailes” (Roots and Wings) in 2004. The show, which extensively followed the progression of an antiques purchase, was intended to give French people an understanding of why so many Americans were traveling to France to purchase antiques. It also made Stone and Diamond household names.

Being on “Des Racines et des Ailes,” Kevin says, changed everything. Their appearance served as a catalyst for acquiring new business at an unprecedented level. With direct access to chateaus and estates, Kevin Stone Antiques could now compete with high-end shops at a lower price point and without a middle man, making them a trusted partner for some of the world’s most prominent clients.

Over the course of their 25 years together, Stone and Diamond have built a spirited life around their shared passions and extraordinary style and amassed an impressive personal collection.

Combining their love of historic preservation, decorating and antiques, the couple decided to take on the restoration of a historic home in Natchez, Mississippi, having been drawn to the area by its historic architecture. When they first laid eyes on the magnificent Banker’s House (ca. 1836), they knew they were home.

Over the course of a year, Stone and Diamond poured their hearts and souls into transforming the Banker’s House into the masterpiece it once was, an undertaking that would become one of their most significant and personal projects.

A Mississippi Masterpiece

When Levin R. Marshall, a prominent businessman and banker, moved to Natchez in 1831 to become cashier of the United States Bank, he could’ve never imagined that he would also bring to life one of the area’s most distinct and, now, historic properties.

Having acquired extensive sugar and cotton plantations, Marshall constructed himself a magnificent suburban residence, known as Richmond, just one mile south of the city. When he opened the Commercial Bank of Natchez, a notable feat and architectural marvel in its own right, however, he decided he would also need a Natchez home for the purpose of entertaining.

This home, built between 1835 and 1838 adjoining the Commercial Bank of Natchez – one of the only U.S. houses to be attached to a bank – fittingly became known as the Banker’s House and received its designation as a National Historic Landmark in October 1974.

A significant example of Greek Revival architecture, the Banker’s House, built on an airy center-hall plan familiar in many Southern towns, impressively features carved limestone across the building’s entire facade and 20-inch walls made of thick brick with scored plaster. The limestone was transported from Cincinnati by river specifically for use in this structure, and the marvelous woodwork in the home’s interiors – including its 28-in-tall baseboards and 18-in-wide window and door casings – was carved from local longleaf pine, making the house a notable one-of-a-kind in Natchez. Strikingly, the house features 14-ft. ceilings both downstairs and upstairs and has marble mantles on all 14 of its fireplaces.

When a cotton blight affected the area, Marshall was forced to sell both the bank and the house at auction. The bank building served a variety of uses through the years, including as a Christian Science center in the 1970s and then was a girls’ school and a boarding house before sitting vacant for many years.

During its years of abandonment, the house was known as “haunted” by neighborhood children, who would often play inside, sliding down the banister, which today still bears signs of the breaks where many of these children fell.

In 2021, the house, which by this point was in dire need of restoration, would begin a chapter of renewal as Stone and Diamond’s magnificent private residence and home to their exquisite personal collection.

An Extraordinary Home for Two

The Banker’s House required a full floor-up renovation that included all-new plumbing, wiring and electrical systems. Additionally, 80 percent of the exterior plaster and 60 percent of the interior plaster, which had been released from the brick, was replaced, and all woodwork was meticulously stripped and repainted.

Retaining the house’s rich history was essential to Stone and Diamond, who painstakingly restored even the smallest details to their original splendor.

In 2021, the couple moved into their new family home, one of Natchez’s finest and most elegant, housing with them their collection of more than 25 years – a testament that historic homes can function and inspire as beautiful modern living spaces.

A Collection from the Heart

Stone and Diamond’s collection is a stunning reflection of their shared love for antiques, their inimitable style and the full life they have built together. The items, the majority of which they acquired over decades of traveling through Europe, showcase the very best in collecting. Every hand-selected piece in their collection possesses a story, contributing to the vibrancy and sophistication of the historic house they called home.

While the avid collectors ensured every room in the house contained distinctive furniture and decorative objects, it was the living room – a cherished and celebratory space – that held some of their most prized possessions.

In the dining room, anchored by the second Genovese chandelier, the couple showcased their extensive collection of porcelain, from Delft and Old Paris to Derby in a majestic Irish breakfront cabinet. One of Stone’s most special acquisitions was also kept in this room: a set of 12 European Oak chairs with custom leather coverings by Fortuny, likely the venerable Venetian fabric house’s only leather pattern ever produced. Stone first fell in love with them at a dinner party in Italy and, after much persistence and patience, purchased them years later.

A magnificent 18th-century Genovese chandelier, one of a pair and originally unwired, served as the living room’s anchor, and Aubusson tapestries that once served as door coverings during the Napoleon III era were custom-made to be window shades for the home’s entire downstairs. All of the drapery, hand-made from Pierre Frey fabrics, was sown by Carolyn Clark, a local seamstress. A pair of chairs in the Louis XV style, strikingly covered in alligator skin, are also among the couple’s favorite pieces once kept in their living room.

While Stone and Diamond had expected to downshift their life upon moving to Natchez, they found themselves busier than ever, frequently hosting parties in their magnificent home. An avid cook, Diamond prepared many a grand meal in the house’s original kitchen, now outfitted with modern amenities with a traditional feel.

The couple’s eye for the finest antiques and distinct details is evident through their entire collection and in the manner in which they thoughtfully decorated the Banker’s House, which they peppered with personal connections and delightful surprises. These include a bed Stone has slept in since he was 12 years old, acquired from New Orleans by his family in Arkansas sometime between 1850 and 1860; the piano Stone has played since he was 18 years old; 72-inch televisions hidden within 18th-century armoires; dozens of reference books they have used throughout their illustrious career; and even a dream closet, complete with a hydraulic system for ease-of-access, designed by Ruffino Custom Closets in New Orleans.

A gifted singer and piano player, Stone delighted in ushering guests into the music room after a dinner party. In addition to a grand piano, this room also held an 18th-century mirror salvaged from a palazzo on Venice’s Grand Canal; a custom bookcase that was once a picture frame for an oil painting of the Pope and housed in a religious building; and a pair of Dieppe ivory mirrors, to name just a few of the impressive collection acquired by Stone and Diamond over the years.

Over the past 25 years, the couple traveled to Europe six to eight times per year, commemorating each visit by bringing home a Grand Tour souvenir, each notably representing a different European landmark. Their special collection of Grand Tour souvenirs, primarily bronze and marble, also serves as a retrospective of their travel memories.

While the Banker’s House may well have served as a museum, Stone and Diamond are proud of the welcoming and well-lived-in space they lovingly created together. Every space was thoughtfully curated to showcase their love for historic homes and antiques, and their conviction that these houses should be celebrated and lived in.

A New Chapter

Thanks to Stone and Diamond’s shared passion for historic architecture and preservation and their sophisticated eye for design, The Banker’s House will certainly have many more fabulous centuries ahead of her.

Looking to simplify as they move into the next chapter of their lives to enjoy retirement, Stone and Diamond felt it was important to offer their collection in New Orleans, honoring their long legacy as New Orleans dealers.

New Orleans Auction Galleries is honored to collaborate with them in presenting part one of this extensive collection, featuring some of their most cherished and rare pieces from their personal collection, as well as selections from Kevin Stone Antiques – all from their historic Natchez home.