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Auctions
Bubble Bursts
Sales plummeted at Sotheby’s Hong Kong spring auction, with no easy explanation.
By Mary Kavanagh
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| 52.50-carat diamond necklace by Bulgari, circa 1950s, sold for $1,671,795.
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In startling contrast to the two 2014 Sotheby’s Hong Kong Magnificent Jewels and Jadeite auctions, no world records were achieved at the April 6, 2015, sale, the overall results fell far short of the $99 million sales projection and many of the highlighted lots went unsold. This year’s April auction totaled $37,202,244, just over one-third of the presale estimate. The 317-lot sale sold 67.2 percent by lot and 37 percent by value, with 104 lots failing to sell. This compares to Sotheby’s Hong Kong sales in autumn 2014, which brought in $75,275,870, the third-highest-ever total for the sale of jewelry in Asia, and to the April 2014 auction, which achieved $106,615,865, setting a new record for the highest total for the sale of jewelry in Asia.
Included in the almost one-third of the 317 lots that remained unsold were a number of the auction’s main attractions. Most notably was the Lady Luck Diamond, a 77.77-carat VS2 fancy vivid yellow diamond and diamond ring, flanked by two heart-shaped diamonds that together weighed roughly 5 carats. Also unsold were a 4.57-carat internally flawless fancy vivid pink diamond and diamond ring mounted by Carvin French, a pair of rare fancy intense purple-pink diamond pendant earrings and a pair of unheated Burmese Mogok ruby and diamond pendant earrings by Bulgari. Another major highlight, a 23.15-carat D color internally flawless type IIa diamond ring, dubbed The Legend of Golconda, was withdrawn at the last minute. On the bright side, eight of the 21 lots with presale high estimates over $1 million were sold.
“Unfortunately, our clients were just not bidding on our top high-value lots this sale,” said Quek Chin Yeow, deputy chairman of Sotheby’s Asia and chairman of International Jewellery, Asia.
Although the sale was billed by Sotheby’s as “a bejeweled kaleidoscope of gems, from divine diamonds, colored stones and pearls to jadeite, including the reddest of rubies to tempt the most discerning of collectors, in Asia and around the world,” white diamonds clearly dominated the top lots, with seven out of ten featuring white diamonds only.
The top lot of the evening was a pair of diamond pendant earrings featuring two suspended brilliant-cut diamonds weighing 12.87 carats and 12.77 carats, respectively, that sold to a member of the international trade for $2,548,718*, exceeding the presale low estimate of $2.3 million.
Three fine diamond rings featured in the top ten, each of them exceeding their respective presale high estimates: a 10.08-carat brilliant-cut diamond ring was bought by an Asian private investor for $1,779,487, a highly contested 10.01-carat ring, simply set with a cut-cornered rectangular step-cut diamond, was sold to an Asian private investor for $1,548,718 and a 26.22-carat brilliant-cut VVS2 diamond ring was purchased by a member of the Asian trade for $964,103.
Another sale highlight, and the fifth top lot of the evening, a magnificent vintage diamond necklace from Bulgari, was sold to an Asian private buyer for $1,671,795, significantly above the presale high estimate of $1.2 million. A pair of diamond solitaire earrings, weighing 6.67 carats and 6.64 carats, respectively, was the sixth top lot and sold for $1,579,487.
“The top lots were dominated by top-quality white diamonds, which sold well and were contested, while The Legend of Golconda was withdrawn at the request of the client,” Quek said. “Signed jewels continued to be strong. Pieces from Van Cleef & Arpels, Cartier and the cover lot from Bulgari achieved good results.”
Alongside the diamond rings, two other rings also featured in the top ten. The third lot was an 11.21-carat sapphire and diamond ring that sold to an Asian private collector for $2,087,179, exceeding its presale high estimate slightly. A 2.13-carat fancy intense blue diamond, pink diamond and diamond ring saw active bidding and sold to the international trade for $1,441,026, above the presale high estimate of $1.2 million.
Jadeite jewelry regularly features in the top ten lots in Asia, and this auction was no exception. The second top lot of the evening, a rare pair of jadeite bangles, was bought by an Asian private collector for $2,164,103.
There was a good turnout for the sale at the Hong Kong Convention Center. The room was packed in the earlier stages of the sale although there appeared to be a lack of visitors from Mainland China compared to other recent auctions. In-room bidders were active, as were those on the telephone and online. One of the in-room auction participants, who wished to remain anonymous, described the overall mood as “dead,” noting it was “not as good as usual,” possibly a reflection on the global economy.
“The atmosphere in the salesroom was fine and participant demographics were similar to the past few seasons,” concluded Quek. “Although down by a negligible percentage in the salesroom, bidding from Mainland China remained high in the sale, complemented by participation from the rest of Asia and beyond.”
*All prices include buyer’s premium.Article from the Rapaport Magazine - May 2015. To subscribe click here.
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