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One of a pair of diamond bangle bracelets by Bhagat that sold for $546,192.
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With the top ten lots all selling for well in excess of $1
million, Christie’s spring sale of Hong Kong Magnificent Jewels proved once
again the enthusiasm of Asian buyers. The lively and well-attended auction,
held on May 29 in the Hong Kong Convention & Exhibition Centre, lasted for
about six hours on the next to the last day of Christie’s five-day spring
auctions. The adjacent rooms of the convention center were buzzing with
visitors to the house’s art, calligraphy and watches exhibitions. The total for
the wide range of goods auctioned over the five days was $351.7 million.
The Magnificent Jewels sale sold 79 percent by lot, with 236
lots sold out of 300 lots offered, and 82 percent by value, for a total of
$80,258,468. Most of the bidding came through the telephones, but there also
were many bids from the largely Asian crowd present in the room.
Highlights of the auction were a pink diamond and a red
ruby. “The jewelry market in Asia remains strong, with The Martian Pink, a
12.04-carat fancy intense pink diamond mounted by Harry Winston, achieving a
staggering $17,395,728* after a worldwide exhibition tour in spring 2012,” said
Vickie Sek, head of Christie’s Asia jewelry department. “Top-quality gemstones,
such as sapphires, rubies and emeralds, as well as natural pearls, are also
increasingly sought after by our clients, particularly private collectors in
Asia.” Sek added that the auction achieved “top prices across the board,”
including a world record price of $551,000 per carat for what she called “a
perfect Burmese ruby.”
A PASSION FOR PINK
As expected, the top lot was The Martian Pink, which sold to
an anonymous telephone buyer, following a rapid rise in bids that had the
audience gasping in amazement. The largest round fancy intense pink diamond
ever to appear at auction, the stone was previously the property of a prominent
private collector, and was named by Ronald Winston in honor of the United
States’ first satellite mission to Mars, the red planet, in 1976, the year the
stone was first sold.
Presale estimates for the rare VS1, type IIa stone were $8
million to $12 million, but the bidding soon surpassed expectations. Starting
at $6,440,000, it rose quickly in increments of approximately $100,000. After
reaching a pregnant pause at around $15 million, the sense of drama in the room
increased as two bidders on the telephones briskly escalated their offers in an
attempt to outbid each other, until, finally, one succeeded.
THE BURMESE RUBIES
The record-setting 6.04-carat Burmese ruby and diamond ring
by Etcetera, a Hong Kong-based brand founded by the former head of Christie’s
Hong Kong jewelry department, had a presale estimate of $2.5 million to $3.8
million. The oval-shaped ruby’s well-saturated “pigeon’s blood red” color and
the lack of any thermal enhancement assured wide interest in the stone, which
was set in a cushion-shaped diamond petal surround and mounted in 18-karat
white gold.
Bids for the ring, which was the last lot of the auction,
rose slowly but steadily before a rapt audience to reach a sale price of
$3,330,768. The buyer, a young female Asian private, left the room smiling
happily.
The next-to-last lot of the sale was a ruby and diamond
necklace with 52 Burmese rubies — also with pigeon’s blood red color — set in
diamond surrounds. It attracted fast-paced bidding by several buyers on the
telephone and one in the room before finally selling for $1,390,071.
DIAMOND SENSATIONS
White diamonds attracted rapid bidding, including the second
top lot of the day, a pair of unmounted brilliant-cut D flawless, type IIa
diamonds, each weighing exactly 10.88 carats. They sold to an Asian private for
$4,845,456. A trio of rings also achieved million-dollar-plus prices. A large
diamond ring by JAR featured an oval-shaped DIF diamond of approximately 10.67
carats flanked by two pear-shaped DIF diamonds of approximately 6.07 and 6.04
carats.It sold to an Asian buyer bidding on the telephone for $2,970,128. A
Harry Winston diamond ring with a brilliant-cut, 11.85-carat diamond sold for
$1,960,336, just over the presale low estimate. Rounding out the high-selling
rings was an 18.18-carat rectangular diamond ring, which brought in $1,361,079.
Other headliners were a diamond riviere necklace of 109.26
carats that went to an Asian private buyer for $2,046,890 and a pendant
featuring a pear-shaped 14.37-carat diamond mounted in platinum that sold for
$1,960,336, also to an Asian private buyer.
Plenty of variety was seen in the hues of the colored
diamond offerings. Highlights included a fancy vivid yellow VVS1 diamond
weighing 10.81 carats, which went for $1,383,312. A fancy brown-yellow diamond
of 40.94 carats sold for $1,527,568 and an intense pink 3.11-carat diamond sold
to an Asian private buyer for $2,032,464.
COLORED STONES
A series of rings set with colored gemstones — often paired
with diamonds — attracted enthusiastic bidding. A ring featuring a
rectangular-shaped diamond of approximately 9.04 carats paired with a
rectangular-shaped natural Colombian 7.05-carat emerald sold for $1,089,795
after heated telephone bidding. Another ring by Etcetera, this one with a
cushion-shaped 11.10-carat Kashmir sapphire set in a circular diamond surround,
sold for $1,390,071 to a buyer in the room.
JADE
As usual at the Hong Kong sales, jade pieces were popular,
particularly jade and diamond items. Rings saw healthy bidding, especially a
round emerald-green jadeite double cabochon and diamond ring, which sold for
$748,101. An oval jadeite cabochon ring with half-moon diamond shoulders and
diamond gallery went for $328,750. High prices were also achieved for jadeite
necklaces, with a diamond necklace set with 17 oval jadeite cabochons fetching $934,480.
A jadeite and diamond ring and pendant earring set mounted in 18-karat white
gold sold for $468,534 .
Other unusual pieces also sold well, such as a 15.58-carat
alexandrite — with strong color-change properties — set in an oval-shaped
diamond surround, which sold for $934,480. A pair of natural Burmese sapphires
of 9.69 carats and 8.95 carats, suspended from 1.51-carat and 1.50-carat
diamonds in a pair of ear clips by Cartier sold for $592,786. An intricately
constructed pair of diamond bracelets by Bhagat (pictured at right), set with a
row of brilliant cuts, a row of pear shapes and a row of baguettes, sold for
$546,192.
Sek said the sale went well for a number of reasons. “First,
our specialists put together an expertly curated sale, with an eye toward
beautiful and high-quality jewels. Second, we were able to source exceedingly
rare items, such as The Martian Pink and the superb Burmese ruby — which both
trade and collectors are willing to compete for. Third, the property was priced
attractively and in line with the market. To find the right goods for the right
market is very important. Finally, with the current volatility in the stock
markets, there is the element of certain investors wanting to put their funds
in jewels.
*All prices include buyer’s premium.
Article from the Rapaport Magazine - July 2012. To subscribe click here.