Christie’s Hong Kong

$15M Blue Diamond to Hit Christie’s Auction Block

A blue diamond pendant will be among the headliners in next month’s Christie’s sale in New York, where it is expected to bring in up to $15 million.

The pear modified brilliant-cut, 31.62-carat, fancy-blue stone, surrounded by white and pink diamonds, is potentially internally flawless, Christie’s said Tuesday. A pear brilliant-cut, 86.64-carat, D-color, VVS1-clarity diamond pendant will join it at the December 6 Magnificent Jewels sale. That piece, which hangs from a chain of 78 diamonds between 0.50 and 2.50 carats, is estimated at $5 million to $7 million.

Other notable items include a torque bangle bracelet bearing a heart brilliant-cut, 50.05-carat, D-color, internally flawless diamond, with a presale price of $3.7 million to $4.5 million. A modified pear double rose-cut, 5-carat, fancy-vivid-blue diamond ring has an upper estimate of $4 million and no reserve. An oval brilliant-cut, 51.60-carat, G-color, VS2-clarity diamond ring carries a high price of $2.8 million.

Christie’s will also offer an unmounted modified pear brilliant-cut, 104.04-carat, fancy-intense-yellow diamond. That jewel has an upper estimate of $2.5 million, as does a round-cornered square brilliant-cut, 107.46-carat, fancy-yellow diamond brooch by Graff. Meanwhile, an emerald-cut, 13.75-carat, fancy-vivid-yellow, internally flawless diamond ring by De Beers and an oval brilliant-cut, 2.21-carat, fancy-intense-blue diamond ring are set to fetch up to $1.8 million each.

Those items join the star of the show: An emerald-cut, 13.15-carat, fancy-vivid-pink diamond ring that Christie’s expects will fetch up to $35 million at the auction.

Source: Diamonds.net

41ct. Diamond Could Fetch Up to $5M at Christie’s

Christie’s will offer a 41.36-carat Graff diamond ring at its upcoming Geneva auction, predicting it could sell for up to CHF 5 million ($5 million).

The square emerald-cut, D-color, VVS1-clarity diamond, which is potentially internally flawless, is one of the top items set to go under the hammer at the November 8 Magnificent Jewels auction, Christie’s said last week.

Several other diamonds will also take center stage, including an unmounted modified shield brilliant-cut, 101.27-carat, F-color, VVS1-clarity diamond. That stone carries a high estimate of CHF 3.5 million ($3.5 million). A pair of Art Deco modified pear brilliant-cut diamond earrings by designer Henri Picq will also be up for sale. The set, featuring one 15.39-carat, D-color, VS1-clarity diamond and one 14.85-carat, D-color, VS2-clarity stone, has an upper price tag of CHF 2.5 million ($2.5 million).

Other notable items include a cushion brilliant-cut, 20.08-carat, F-color, flawless diamond ring, estimated at up to CHF 1.5 million ($1.5 million). A pear brilliant-cut, 14.19-carat, D-color, internally flawless diamond ring has a high price of CHF 1.2 million ($1.2 million).

Those stones will join the Fortune Pink, a pear-shaped, 18.18-carat, fancy-vivid-pink diamond. The gem, which Christie’s claims is the largest of its cut and color to be offered at auction, is expected to bring in up to CHF 35 million ($35.1 million). The sale will also showcase royal jewels from the Bourbon Parma family and from the Thurn and Taxis family.

Source: Diamonds.net

‘The Rock,’ the largest white diamond ever auctioned, sells for $21.9 million

he largest white diamond to ever come up for auction has been sold for $21.9 million USD at Christie’s in Geneva.
The 228.31-carat, pear shaped gemstone dubbed “The Rock” originated from South Africa, where some of the largest diamonds in the world have been found, including the pear-shaped “Star of Africa” and rose cushion cut “Golden Jubilee.”
“The Rock” is about the size of a golf ball and was previously worn as a lavish Cartier necklace by its former owner. Along with the pear-shaped stone, the new owner will also receive a round diamond and platinum pendant mounting from the French luxury brand.
World’s largest blue diamond to come to auction has sold for $57.5 million
Ahead of the sale, the head of Christie’s jewelry department in Geneva, Max Fawcett, explained why “The Rock” is a particularly unique stone.
“Often with these largest stones, they sacrifice some of the shape in order to keep the weight,” he told Reuters. “This is a perfectly symmetrical pear-shape form and… one of the rarest gems ever to be sold at auction.”

Christie’s to Auction $18M D-Flawless Diamond

Christie’s will offer a 103.49-carat diamond that could fetch up to $18 million at its upcoming New York sale.

The emerald-cut, D-Flawless, type IIa stone, called the Light of Africa diamond, will headline the auction house’s Magnificent Jewels sale on June 8, it said Monday. It will be among the items featured as part of Christie’s luxury week.

The diamond was cut from a 299.3-carat rough Petra Diamonds recovered from its Cullinan mine in South Africa in January 2021. Petra then sold the diamond to Dubai-based diamond-sourcing and supply company Stargems DMCC in March of that year for $12.18 million. It is the third-largest high-quality white diamond recovered from Cullinan since Petra acquired it in 2008, the miner noted.

Christie’s will preview the diamond in Geneva from May 6 to 11, followed by Hong Kong from May 22 to 24, before showing it in New York between June 3 and 7.

Source: Diamonds.net

74ct. Diamond to Headline Christie’s Hong Kong

Christie’s will offer a 74-carat diamond necklace that could fetch up to $7 million at its upcoming Hong Kong auction.

The piece contains a 73.68-carat, F-color, internally flawless center stone, called the Snowdrop Diamond, and 78 additional diamonds weighing a total of 130.92 carats. It will headline the auction house’s November 28 Magnificent Jewels sale, together with a heart-shaped, 36.20-carat, D-color, internally flawless diamond pendant necklace carrying a high estimate of $3.2 million, Christie’s said Wednesday. Designer Ronald Abram created both jewels.

Two colored-diamond pieces are also set to star in the sale. A pair of earrings featuring fancy-vivid-blue diamonds weighing 3.06 and 2.61 carats along with white diamonds is set to go under the hammer with a price tag of up to $8 million. Meanwhile, a 3.32-carat, fancy-vivid-blue, internally flawless diamond ring could fetch as much as $6.4 million, Christie’s noted.

Other notable pieces include a jadeite cabochon ring with a high valuation of $1 million, a pair of jadeite cabochon earrings estimated at $480,000 to $750,000, and a jadeite, ruby and diamond necklace and bracelet set by Cartier.

A selection of cufflinks containing diamonds, emeralds, rubies and sapphires, assembled over decades by a prominent private collector, will also be on offer, the auction house added.

Christie’s will preview the items in Taipei, Taiwan; Tokyo; Shanghai; Beijing; and Hong Kong.

Source: Diamonds.net

Marie-Antoinette diamonds up for auction for first time in Geneva

wo splendid diamond bracelets that belonged to French queen Marie-Antoinette will go under the hammer in Geneva later this year, the auction house Christie’s said Wednesday.

The bracelets, coated with 112 diamonds in total, will be sold together and are estimated to fetch between $2-4 million when they go under the hammer on November 9.

That estimate “includes not only the intrinsic value of the diamonds, but also the possibility to wear jewellery that was once worn by the famous queen Marie-Antoinette,” Christie’s jewellery specialist Marie-Cecile Cisamolo told Agence France-Presse.

The historic jewels could meanwhile easily go for far more than the asking price.

“As seen in recent Geneva sales, the market for jewels of noble provenance continues to perform extremely well,” Francois Curiel, the chairperson of Christie’s luxury division, said in a statement.

In 2018, a natural pearl and diamond pendant that belonged to the ill-fated French queen was estimated by the Sotheby’s auction house at $1 million to $2 million but was snapped up for $36 million.

Marie-Antoinette, the last queen of France before the revolution, was guillotined in Paris in October 1793 at the age of 37.

But Cisamolo said that it was not just their history that made the bracelets extraordinary, pointing to the large size of the diamonds, which range from around 1 to 4 carats.

“It is very difficult to measure their exact size, because these are antique diamonds, and back then the sizes were less precise,” she explained.

While lacking the precision of today’s laser-cut gems, Cisamolo stressed the charm and uniqueness of antique diamonds.

In total, Christie’s estimates that the bracelets comprise 140 to 150 carats.

They are each composed of three rows of gems and can be connected together and worn as a necklace.

This picture taken in Geneva on Sep. 6, 2021 shows two bracelets belonged to French Queen Marie-Antoinette adorned with three rows of 112 old cut diamonds. (AFP Photo)

Paris, Brussels and Vienna

According to Christie’s Marie-Antoinette ordered the bracelets from jeweller Charles August Boehmer in Paris in 1776, two years after she ascended the throne.

She paid 250,000 livres, “a huge sum at the time,” Christies said.

Then the revolution arrived.

Before attempting to flee France with king Louis XVI and their children, Marie-Antoinette first made sure her jewels were sent out of the country.

They were sent to Brussels, governed by her sister Archduchess Marie-Christine, before being sent on to the French queen’s native Austria, ruled by her nephew, the emperor.

In 1792, the royal family was imprisoned in Paris. The king and queen were executed the next year, and their 10-year-old son Louis XVII died in captivity.

Only their daughter, Marie Therese of France, survived. She was freed in December 1795 and sent to Austria, where she was given her mother’s jewels.

“These jewels can thus be traced all the way back to Marie-Antoinette,” Cisamolo said, adding that she hoped whoever bought them “will cherish them for the rest of their life.”

“Not only are you wearing something that Marie-Antoinette wore,” she said. “The diamonds are extraordinary.”

The bracelets, she said, showing off the gems glistening on her wrists, “flow. It is as though you are wearing fabric.”

Source: dailysabah

54ct. Diamond Crushes Estimate at Christie’s

The 54.03-carat Chrysler Diamond necklace was among the top sellers at the Christie’s Magnificent Jewels sale in New York, bringing in $5.1 million.

The pear-shaped, D-color, internally flawless stone was originally purchased by Harry Winston in 1958 from the estate of Thelma Chrysler Foy, the daughter of railroad and automotive executive Walter Chrysler. The necklace beat its high estimate of $4.5 million at the June 8 auction, which garnered $26.6 million in total, Christie’s said Tuesday.

Also headlining the sale was the Dancing Sun, a cushion modified brilliant-cut, 204.36-carat, fancy-intense-yellow, VVS2-clarity diamond, the largest originating in North America. The stone sold for $5 million, near the upper end of its valuation.

The Flawless Match, a ring featuring a pear-shaped, 2.52-carat, fancy-vivid-blue diamond and a pear-shaped, 2.43-carat, D-color, internally flawless, type IIa diamond, fetched $2.9 million, within its estimate. Meanwhile, a collection of 19 jewels by JAR, the largest selection of the designer’s pieces offered at auction, went for a total of $5.9 million. That set was led by a diamond bracelet called Branch Under Snow, which achieved $1.9 million, more than three times its high estimate.

The auction house sold 87% of items at the event. Before the live sale, it also held a Jewels Online auction that raked in $3.5 million, with 97% of lots finding buyers.

Source: Diamonds.net

The Largest Diamond Ever Mined in North America up for Auction

*204.36-carat “Dancing Sun” fancy intense yellow diamond*

A 204.36 carat fancy yellow diamond hits the block at the Christie’s Magnificent Jewels auction on June 8 in New York City. The Dancing Sun, with an estimate of $3.5 million to $5.5 million, is the largest polished diamond ever mined in North America.

It was cut from a piece of rough weighing 552.74 carats. Six smaller diamonds were cut from the same rough, ranging from 14.52 to 1.06 carats, and are also included in the sale. All six are set into rings. The rough diamond came from the Diavik Diamond Mine, the second to open following the great Canadian diamond rush of the 1990s.

The previous record for the largest known gem quality rough ever mined in North America was the 187.66 carat Foxfire rough, also mined at Diavik. It was cut into several gems, including a pair of pear shapes weighing 37.87 and 36.80 carats, auctioned at Christie’s New York in December 2018 for $1.5 million.

Christie’s Sells Pink Diamond for Record $29M

The Sakura ring was the star at Christie’s Hong Kong, setting a world-record auction price for a purple-pink diamond.

The cushion-cut, 15.81-carat, fancy-vivid, internally flawless stone sold within its estimate for $29.3 million, or $1.9 million per carat, at the May 23 Magnificent Jewels auction, Christie’s said Sunday. The piece, purchased by a private Asian buyer, was also the most valuable jewel sold at auction so far this year. Overall, the Hong Kong sale raked in $76.8 million, the auction house’s highest total for a jewelry auction in four years.

“We are very excited to have marked another important chapter in jewelry-auction history today, with The Sakura realizing a record-breaking price,” said Vickie Sek, chairman of Christie’s Asia Pacific jewelry department. “The strong sell-through rates and exceptional prices achieved for top-quality colored diamonds and gemstones reflect a robust market demand.”

However, even with the record pricing, the pink diamond still fell short of its $38 million high estimate.

“I would not consider this to be at the lower end of the market price, but there was room for it to go [further] if the current economic stability and situation was better,” Harsh Maheshwari, executive director of colored-diamond dealer Kunming Diamonds, told Rapaport News. “Post-Covid-19, if a similar item were to be auctioned, it would possibly touch, or break, the higher end of the estimated price.”

Meanwhile, The Sweet Heart, a heart-shaped, 4.19-carat, fancy-vivid-pink diamond ring, brought in $6.6 million, or $1.6 million per carat, within its presale valuation.

Other notable items include a necklace with a 50.05-carat, D-flawless, type IIa briolette diamond pendant, which garnered $2.7 million. That price, which comes to $53,399 per carat, was just above its low estimate. A square emerald-cut, 31.17-carat, fancy-vivid-yellow, VS2-clarity diamond ring went for $2.2 million, smashing its high estimate, as did a Cartier necklace with diamonds and five Colombian emeralds weighing a total of 16.43 carats, which achieved $2.1 million.

Overall, Christie’s sold 82% of items on offer at the auction.

Source: Diamonds.net

Largest ever Russian diamond to be auctioned at Christie’s

100.94 carat D colour, internally flawless,
christies, — *100.94 carat D colour, internally flawless rectangular step-cut diamond*

Alrosa Spectacle, a 100.94 carat diamond that is thought to be the largest ever cut in Russia, will be auctioned in Geneva later this month.

The diamond could fetch between 12 million and 18 million Swiss francs ($13.32 million – $19.96 million) when it goes under the hammer at Christie’s May 12.

“This fantastic 100 carat D color diamond was cut from a rough stone that originally weighed more than 200 carats. It was called the Sergei Diaghilev rough diamond and it was mined in 2016,” Marie-Cecile Cisamolo, a specialist in the auction house’s jewelry department, said.

“Between the rough and diamond that we’re offering today, it took one year and eight months to cut into this perfect stone.”

The diamond is one of 144 lots on offer in the sale, which also includes rings, earrings, brooches and other pieces made with diamonds, sapphires and rubies.

Source: dailysabah