On Tuesday, Christie’s auctioned off the most expensive jewel ever sold on an online auction. The 28.86 carat diamond sold for $US2,115,000 million.
One of the rarest diamonds in the world, the Type 11a diamond is formed from pure carbon.
“The spectacular 28.86 carat D colour diamond received immediate attention upon its announcement,” Christie’s Head of Jewellery Rahul Kadakia said in a statement. “The stone possesses a transparency and purity which can only be found in the world’s finest diamonds.
The sale of this exceptional stone established the record for a jewel sold in an online only auction, demonstrating greater client confidence in Christie’s digital ability and online sale platform.”
The sale was the final day of Christie’s Jewels Online sale.
Christie’s is offering the largest D-color diamond to be sold at an online auction. What may be more important is that this sale could establish a new way of selling statement diamonds and gems.
A 28.86 carat, D color, VVS1 clarity diamond is the top lot at Christie’s Jewels Online sale, June 16 – 20. Its estimate is $1 million – $2 million, making it the highest valued lot ever offered for sale online at Christie’s.
With live auctions closed in response to the coronavirus pandemic, auction houses have turned to its already robust infrastructure of online auctions and it has paid off for the two largest auction houses, Christie’s and Sotheby’s, with sell-through rates well above 90 percent and many items surpassing estimates. However, what is being sold is limited to signed and unsigned period jewels at lower values than what are normally sold at live auctions.
