RAPAPORT... Two fancy blue diamonds — one vivid and one intense — took top money at the Geneva auctions in May, each one carrying its respective auction house total to record highs. Although Christie’s sale was only 73 percent sold by lot, its total of $56,967,067 was just a touch lower than that of its rival. Sotheby’s three-catalog sale of 508 lots realized $57,141,621 and was 83.4 percent sold by lot. Following the trend of recent sales, competition for goods at both sales was fierce and global.
In spite of the high prices, the trade proved to be the big buyers, picking up seven of the top ten lots at Christie’s and eight of the top ten at Sotheby’s. The big blue at Christie’s, however, finally fell to a private, who paid $8,877,884* for the 13.39-carat fancy intense blue VS1 stone. It soared over the presale estimate. Eric Valdieu, senior vice president, Christie’s Switzerland, noted that the trade “knew the stone and valued it at $7 million” but with several privates competing, it was a stone destined to exceed the estimate.
Sotheby’s big blue was just 3.73 carats but it achieved a world record price per carat for any gemstone at auction — $1,328,444 — for a total of $4,955,097. It was sold to London diamantaire Laurence Graff, who has a penchant for buying the rarest colored diamonds.
CHRISTIE’S
Christie’s sale offered two lots Valdieu described frankly as “unwearable. We knew these were going to the trade. They were never worn.” The pieces, an emerald, diamond and natural pearl sautoir with a matching brooch, were assembled, he said, by someone “who loved stones.” The necklace was so long, it could not be shown entirely when spread out over two pages of the catalog. They were bought for their considerable breakup value. “Dealers,” he said, “spent hours poring over them and making calculations.” The prices paid proved the scarcity of material. Both pieces soared over their presale estimates, with the sautoir fetching $5,647,115 over a high estimate of $3.3 million. The brooch achieved $4,462,500. Both went to the U.S. trade.
For Valdieu, the purchase of an octagonal cut D,VS2, 10.02-carat diamond was most impressive. The stone, described as of Golconda origin, sold for $1,016,346, just over the high estimate, to the European trade. “This shows how strong the trade is. It’s a special stone, but this is a big price,” Valdieu said. Part of the success of the sale, he pointed out, was from new bidders. “I am always amazed at how many new faces, new dealers are coming; the whole trade is coming to Geneva, or bidding on the phone.”
Sometimes a low estimate scares away buyers, rather than drawing them in. Such was the case with a round E, VVS2 diamond weighing 17.87 carats. “Only the trade could look at the value of the stone,” said Valdieu. “The estimate was very low and the privates were afraid to go higher.” The diamond was sold to the European trade for $2,200,961, more than three times the high estimate.
SOTHEBY’SSotheby’s sale, which followed Christie’s sale the next day, had a stunning sale total of $57.1 million, the second-highest ever recorded for a jewelry auction; the highest was a $68.5 million sale in November of 1993. Its success certified the incredible strength of the jewelry market. David Bennett, Sotheby’s Chairman Europe and the Middle East for Jewelry, called it “the prettiest sale” he had ever seen in his 30 years in the business. He was particularly delighted with the collection of Lily Marinho, a single-owner sale offered in its own catalog. The Marinho jewels brought out the Brazilian bidders, who helped push the prices up. Another catalog, titled “Noble Jewels,” offered period jewelry with provenance to spare, both in the names of the makers as well as the original owners.
When it came to the big-ticket items, the trade once again outbid privates. Among them was Graff, who, in addition to the fancy vivid blue, picked up a fancy light pink. Graff pushed both of these colored diamond lots well beyond their high estimates. The rectangular fancy light pink weighing 6.26 carats set him back $1,593,901.
Avid Brazilian bidders, besotted by Lily Marinho, lined up to buy a piece of her 64-lot collection that ranged from gemstone earrings by Seaman Schepps to stunning diamond earclips. An unidentified buyer scooped up the top lot, diamond pendant ear clips set with two pear-shaped diamonds weighing 11.08 and 11.66 carats, as well as pear-shaped clusters, for $2,927,709.
The cover lot of the Noble Jewels catalog was singled out by Bennett as “extraordinary,” a special piece among a collection of remarkable period jewels. The brooch, described in the catalog as signed by Vever, was actually made by Lalique, according to Bennett, and was “absolutely a masterpiece. It’s earlier than indicated in the catalog, about 1895.” The diamond-set petals of the corsage emulated the blossoms of Japanese trees. The brooch sold for $740,263, three times the high estimate.
Colored diamonds figured prominently in the sale, taking five of the top ten prices, with the trade continuing to pursue these unique stones. A fancy vivid purplish pink rectangular diamond weighing 5.06 carats was sold for $2,554,242. A 33.45-carat cushion cut, fancy intense yellow diamond, signed by Van Cleef & Arpels, sold for $1,113,730, well above the presale estimate. Another fancy intense yellow cushion shape, this one weighing 40.74 carats, was sold for $1,049,707.
With three catalogs to contend with, bidders were given a “slip case.” Sotheby’s chose an Art Deco diamond sautoir by Van Cleef & Arpels as the illustration on the cover of the slip case. Their faith in this piece was well rewarded when it sold to the U.S. trade for $985,684, four times the high estimate.
Another period piece, a natural pearl and diamond brooch dating to the midnineteenth century, was sold for $857,639, one and a half times the presale estimate. The piece featured a large pearl drop suspended from an old mine diamond weighing 7.86 carats. It was one of the jewels in the Noble Jewels catalog, and was sold with its fitted case by Garrard & Co., “Jewelers to the Crown.” In addition to that provenance, the piece carried Gemological Institute of America (GIA) reports stating that the diamond was F, SI1and type IIa.
The selection of jewels and rare stones fed into a worldwide appetite for fine jewels that shows no sign of satiation. It undoubtedly played a part in the high prices realized across the board. Bennett noted that “We sold 66 percent of lots above their high estimate.” Sotheby’s also enjoyed the luxury of offering a tremendous variety of fine jewels and stones, with every category represented. As Bennett noted with delight, “There was less anxiety from my point of view because there was not just one big sale item,” to make or break the sale. Sotheby’s had its Noble and Magnificent Jewels sales lined up when it was offered the Marinho collection. That proved to be the remarkable icing on an already-rich cake.
*All prices include buyer’s premium.
Article from the Rapaport Magazine - June 2008. To subscribe click here.