A pair of fancy vivid orange-yellow diamond earrings weighing 12.20 and 11.96 carats will be the top lot at Christie’s Magnificent Jewels sale on December 6 in New York. The earrings, which are named “California Sunset Diamonds,” are estimated at $7 million – $12 million.
A ring with a similar fancy vivid yellowish orange diamond weighing 5.16 carats has an estimate of $1.5 million – $2 million.
A 5.16-carat fancy vivid yellowish orange diamond has an estimate of $1.5 million – $2 million CHRISTIE’S
There haven’t been many details released yet for Christie’s final jewelry auction of 2023, but the sale will include several fancy colored diamonds, white diamonds and colored gems. As always, there will be signed jewels from important collections.
Christie’s has canceled its fourth sale of jewelry belonging to Austrian billionaire Heidi Horten following controversy over her late husband’s connection to the Nazi party.
“Christie’s has taken the decision not to proceed with further sales of property from the estate of Heidi Horten,” Anthea Peers, president of Christie’s for Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA), told Rapaport News Sunday.
The auction house held three previous sales despite an outcry from parts of the industry. The first, which took place live in Geneva on May 8, included 96 items and brought in $155.6 million, a record for a single collection. Christie’s offered 152 lots on May 10, garnering $42.4 million, while an online sale between May 3 and 15 fetched $4.2 million. The final sale was to have featured 300 pieces.
Although Christie’s donated a “significant portion” of its commission to charity, the gesture did not satisfy many in the industry, who felt the company should not have hosted the sales. The opposition included the World Federation of Diamond Bourses (WFDB), which wrote a letter to the auction house calling the sale “appalling” and asking for assurances that if Christie’s were to proceed, it would expect a major portion of the proceeds to go to Holocaust-related charities. However, many of those organizations, including the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial, refused the donations.
“The sale of the Heidi Horten jewelry collection has provoked intense scrutiny, and the reaction to it has deeply affected us and many others, and we will continue to reflect on it,” Peers added.
A rivière diamond necklace was the top seller at Christie’s Magnificent Jewels in Hong Kong on Monday, bringing in $5.9 million.
The sale price for the piece, which features 52 round brilliant-cut, D-flawless and internally flawless diamonds weighing a total of 104.84 carats, was within estimates. In total, the November 28 auction achieved $46.2 million, with 50% of the jewels on offer exceeding their high estimates, Christie’s said Monday.
The company sold 86% of available lots, or 82% by value, and drew global participation from 21 countries across three continents.
The auction also included a collection of jewels from Hong Kong actress Rosamund Kwan, which fetched a combined total of $11.1 million. The two leading lots from that sale saw heavily competitive bidding, lasting over 15 minutes, Christie’s noted. The top item in the group was a necklace featuring a pear brilliant-cut, 22.18-carat, D-color, VVS1-clarity diamond pendant with rubies and pink diamonds, which went for $2.1 million, within estimates.
Here are the rest of the top five:
A jadeite, diamond and sapphire necklace by Etcetera sold for $2.8 million against a presale estimate of $2.6 million to $3.8 million.
This cushion modified brilliant-cut, 60.79-carat, fancy-vivid-yellow, VS2-clarity diamond ring brought in $2.7 million, in the middle of its $2.3 million to $3.6 million presale range.
A round brilliant-cut, 19.61-carat, D-flawless, type IIa diamond ring exceeded its $1.7 million to $2.3 million presale estimate, bringing in $2.4 million.
This oval-cut, 5.32-carat Burmese pigeon’s blood ruby ring with pear-shaped diamonds by Cartier Paris achieved $2.1 million, within its expected range of $1.9 million to $2.3 million.
A 13.15 carat pink diamond will no longer be available at the upcoming Christie’s Magnificent Jewels auction in New York.
The emerald-cut, fancy vivid pink, VVS1 clarity stone, which carried a price estimate of $25 million to $35 million, was poised to be the December 6 sale’s showcase piece. Christie’s described the diamond as one of the largest of its kind to appear at auction.
“Christie’s confirms that the fancy vivid pink diamond ring has been withdrawn from sale in New York on December 6,” a spokesperson said. The company declined to comment further or provide a reason.
The item was scheduled to appear on display in Hong Kong on Friday. The removal was “very surprising,” said one colored diamond dealer in the municipality.
Colored diamonds have had a mixed season at auction. On November 8, the 18.18-carat Fortune Pink fetched CHF 28.4 million ($28.9 million) at Christie’s Geneva, toward the lower end of its presale estimate. The following day, a 5.53 carat diamond from the De Beers Exceptional Blue Collection failed to find a buyer at a Sotheby’s auction in the Swiss city.
With the 13.15 carat pink off the list, the top remaining item at the Magnificent Jewels sale is a pear modified brilliant cut, 31.62 carat, fancy blue diamond pendant with a price estimate of $10 million to $15 million.
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.
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.
A diamond weighing more than 100 carats smashed its high estimate at Christie’s New York Wednesday, raking in $20 million.
The emerald-cut, 103.49-carat, D-flawless, type IIa Light of Africa was the star of the Magnificent Jewels auction, surpassing its $18 million presale upper price tag. The stone is the fifth most-valuable colorless diamond Christie’s has ever offered, it said Thursday. It was crafted by Dubai-based manufacturer Stargems, from a 299.3-carat rough unearthed at Petra Diamonds’ Cullinan mine in South Africa. Stargems bought the stone for $12.2 million in 2021.
In total, the sale garnered $48.9 million, with 95% of the items on offer finding buyers.
“The Magnificent Jewels auction…rounded off an incredible sale season with solid results worldwide,” said Rahul Kadakia, international head of jewelry for Christie’s. “The 103.49-carat Light of Africa diamond achieved an incredible $195,000 per carat, demonstrating the strength of the diamond market at the highest levels.”
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 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.
One of the world’s largest yellow diamonds weighing 205.7 ct and known as the Red Cross Diamond is to be auctioned by Christie’s London.
The fancy intense yellow, cushion-shaped stone has a pavilion distinctively faceted in the shape of a Maltese cross.
The original rough gem was recovered by De Beers, in South Africa, in 1901 and was sold in 1918 in aid of the British Red Cross Society and the Order of St John.
It raised $13,000 equivalent to $780,000 in today’s money when it was sold at Christie’s London to the famous London firm S.J. Phillips.
It was sold again in November 1973, achieving CHF 1.8 million at Christie’s Geneva and returned to private ownership.
The diamond will again be offered for sale at Christie’s London on 11 May, with an undisclosed part of the sale revenue to be donated to the International Committee of the Red Cross.
We have asked Christie’s for the estimate, which is available “on request”.
