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Auctions
Top Dollar for Top Jewels
Led by exceptional fancy color diamonds, the Geneva spring auctions registered record results of almost $324 million.
By Francesco Rosa
“In the lead-up to the sales, the mood in the general jewelry market was not good at all,” observed David Bennett, chairman Switzerland and worldwide chairman of Sotheby’s jewelry division, at the conclusion of both auctions. “And suddenly it turned out to be a great success.” An array of important fancy color diamonds and a well-priced selection of quality jewels fresh to the market, once again propelled the Geneva auctions to record sales. Twelve of the combined top 20 lots were colored diamonds, amounting to more than 50 percent of the grand total. Top-quality white diamonds sold at steady prices and six white diamond lots made it into the top lots sold. Two colored gemstone lots rounded out the top 20.
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Christie’s sale following Sotheby’s record auction did not disappoint. Totaling $148,639,176 and registering a very high sold-by-value figure of 93 percent, the sale will inevitably be remembered for the heart-stopping bidding duel for The Oppenheimer Blue — a 14.62-carat fancy vivid blue rectangular-cut diamond ring. It set a new world auction record for any jewel, selling to an anonymous private collector for a whopping $57,541,779, or $3,935,826 per carat. “The bidding lasted 25 minutes, but it felt like five minutes! The entire room was holding their breath,” stated Rahul Kadakia, international head of jewelry, Christie’s. “Bidding on the phone, the final two bidders did not know each other and yet they were playing a game with one another, trying to see how one could psych the other one out: ‘Let’s throw a million now, let’s throw two hundred thousand now, let’s try to unnerve the other bidder.’ At this level of bidding, you are dealing with very, very intelligent people. That in itself was entertaining; it was incredibly exciting. The room wanted the stone to do well and for those 25 minutes, this was everybody’s diamond and that was great. It has been a long time since I saw people clapping every time a bid came in. It was like a tennis match!” Christie’s offered 285 lots, of which 244 were sold, representing a sold-by-lot value of 86 percent. By comparison, their November 2015 sale totaled $109.5 million and their May 2015 sale garnered $97.5 million. The top four lots were colored diamond jewels, including The Oriental Sunrise, a stunning pair of 12.20-carat and 11.96-carat fancy vivid orange-yellow oval-cut diamond and diamond earrings, which sold for $11,505,926, or $476,238 per carat. Four white diamond lots also made the top ten list of highest-selling jewels, including The Pohl Diamond, an historic 36.09-carat, rectangular-cut, D, VVS1 diamond ring by Cartier, which sold for $4,362,432, or $120,876 per carat. It came with a working diagram stating that the gem is potentially internally flawless. “I was very encouraged by the price of white diamonds,” concluded Kadakia, “Prices were steady and D flawless stones were selling between $120,000 to $136,000 per carat.” *All prices include buyer’s premium.
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