The mood was upbeat at the November 2020 Sotheby’s and Christie’s jewelry sales in Geneva, despite Swiss Covid-19 regulations that denied bidders access to the salesrooms. Vigorous online and telephone demand for the contemporary, vintage and estate jewels and gemstones on offer triggered two world records for rare colored diamonds, and several lots soared above presale estimates.
Most collectors and trade buyers had already decided not to attend in person due to pandemic-related restrictions at home. Fortunately, the efficient digital auction process and the resilient market for exceptional high jewelry instilled confidence in buyers.
Christie’s: Robust bidding
Auctioneer Max Fawcett opened the November 10 Christie’s Magnificent Jewels sale in the Four Seasons Hotel des Bergues, which was empty of in-person bidders for the first time. Still, the flow of bids was steady throughout the sale, with masked Christie’s staff managing expanded telephone banks and online channels.
Overall, 89% of lots sold, totaling around $40 million. The main lots met or exceeded their estimates, signaling that the auction market for high-value jewelry and gemstones was robust despite the pandemic, and that collectors were taking refuge in rare and beautiful pieces as “safe haven” investments.
A Graff ring with a rectangular-cut, fancy-purplish-red diamond of 1.05 carats achieved over $2.6 million per carat, a world auction record for a diamond of that color. It sold to Tiara Gems and Jewellery, a Dubai-based company that specializes in rare fancy-colored diamonds.
“Some red diamonds have a touch of brown, but this was a lively color — and a great shape,” Fawcett told Rapaport Magazine in a telephone interview after the sale. “Also, it was VS in terms of clarity.”
Key trends included buoyant demand for extraordinary signed pieces — notably ones by Cartier, Bulgari, Van Cleef & Arpels, and Graff — as well as for exceptional diamonds, emeralds, rubies and sapphires.
The top lot was a rectangular-cut, fancy-vivid-yellow diamond of 28.88 carats that sold for nearly CHF 2.9 million ($3.1 million), coming in at the top end of its estimate after a frenzy of bidding.
The lot that attracted the most protracted bidding was a multi-gem Art Deco desk clock by Van Cleef & Arpels. The piece finally went for just over CHF 1 million ($1.1 million) — nearly triple its high estimate — to applause from salesroom staff.
One high-profile item that drew significant attention before the sale was a Cartier tutti frutti bracelet from circa 1925. Similar jewels had performed extremely well in online sales early in the lockdown. The bracelet fetched CHF 1.1 million ($1.2 million), beating estimates and underscoring the strength of signed Art Deco pieces in the market.
“The reason for the result is rarity,” Fawcett said. “Very few Cartier tutti frutti bracelets come onto the market. People always want what they don’t have.”
Kashmir sapphires, celebrated for their scarcity and their cornflower-blue color, were highly sought after. A Kashmir sapphire and diamond bracelet sold for $2.4 million, at the top end of its estimate. Emeralds shone as well: Four exquisite, unmounted specimens netted CHF 834,000 ($917,400) after intense bidding, surging far above their CHF 200,000 ($220,000) high estimate.
Two pieces by JAR — Paris-based jeweler Joel Arthur Rosenthal — saw fierce competition and continued the trend of outstripping estimates. A 3-carat sapphire and diamond ring, complete with pink JAR case, sold for CHF 137,500 ($151,250), more than twice its high estimate. The other lot, a ruby and diamond ring, garnered CHF 942,000 ($1 million), around double its estimate.
“There is no one else [among living designers] who has managed to create so much demand for his pieces,” Fawcett commented.
Estate, antique and vintage jewelry items also yielded impressive results, among them an emerald and diamond Bulgari necklace that was formerly part of a royal collection. It sold for approximately CHF 1.8 million ($1.9 million), comfortably within estimates.
A few items failed to find buyers, such as a colored-diamond ring that attracted no bids higher than CHF 260,000 ($286,000) against an estimate of CHF 480,000 to CHF 650,000 ($528,000 to $715,000).
Nonetheless, “the sale clearly showed that despite Covid-19, exceptional signed jewelry pieces and colored diamonds will be in strong demand,” said author Marijan Dundek, who wrote the book Diamonds and has represented high-net-worth clients in previous Geneva Magnificent Jewels sales.
Sotheby’s: a world record
The highlight of the Geneva sales was the world auction record that the 14.83-carat, fancy-vivid-purple-pink Spirit of the Rose diamond achieved at Sotheby’s: CHF 24.4 million ($26.6 million), the highest sum for a diamond of that color. Russian miner Alrosa had unearthed and cut the ultra-rare stone from the largest pink diamond mined in the country. Named after a Russian ballet, the diamond sold to an anonymous buyer in a dedicated single-lot auction on November 11.
Immediately preceding it on the same day was the Magnificent Jewels and Noble Jewels sale, which totaled approximately CHF 18.2 million ($19.8 million) and saw over 80% of its 101 lots sell.
“With bidders from all around the world, the strong results achieved confirm the resilience of the jewelry auction market,” said Olivier Wagner, senior jewelry specialist at Sotheby’s Geneva. “The world auction record for the Spirit of the Rose demonstrates the increasing demand for exceptional and rare colored diamonds, even more so in uncertain times. The rarity and beauty of this diamond, matched with an attractive presale estimate, resulted in a record price.”
The auctions occurred shortly after the November 3 closure of Rio Tinto’s Argyle mine in Australia, which was a major source of pink diamonds.
“The Spirit of the Rose has great significance for Russian diamond producers,” said Dundek, predicting that with Argyle shut down, “Russia will become the most important source for some of the rarest colored diamonds.”
Tobias Kormind, managing director of online retailer 77 Diamonds, affirmed the stone’s importance. “The buyer has made a smart investment move. It’s an incredibly desirable stone, and the fact that it’s both internally flawless and purple-pink in color adds to the rarity. It’s the icing on the cake.”
Among the other standout performers at Sotheby’s was a pair of natural pearl and diamond earrings attributed to Cartier, which sold for CHF 226,800 ($247,212), easily surpassing their CHF 110,000 ($119,900) high estimate. The increasing rarity of natural pearls has underpinned their value at auction in recent years.
Vintage signed jewels also outdid themselves, including a Harry Winston diamond ring from circa 1970 that garnered CHF 806,500 ($880,569), exceeding its CHF 600,000 ($654,000) high estimate. A diamond brooch by Van Cleef & Arpels from circa 1940 was another strong lot, selling for more than three times its high estimate at CHF 163,800 ($178,542).
“Vintage signed pieces are always very popular,” said Wagner. “Flower motifs have always been iconic in jewelry design, and the stylish diamond-set rose brooch signed Van Cleef & Arpels...is a perfect example, [achieving] more than five times its presale low estimate.”
Reinforcing the buoyant market for Kashmir sapphires, a sapphire and diamond ring from the late 19th century fetched CHF 151,200 ($164,808) — more than triple its high estimate — after fierce bidding.
“Kashmir sapphires are legendary and always attract collectors’ attention at auction,” Wagner stated.
The minority of jewels that went unsold included a fancy-brown-pink diamond ring, which fell short of its CHF 220,000 ($239,800) low estimate.
Article from the Rapaport Magazine - January 2021. To subscribe click here.