Jewels - 2nd page
Not including diamonds. See White diamond , Pink diamond, Blue diamond and African diamonds
See also : Jewels Cartier Jade Qianlong Spain III Ancient Spain Louis XIV-XVI Islam India
Chronology : 16th century 1570-1599 1620-1629 18th century 1790-1799 1933 1972
See also : Jewels Cartier Jade Qianlong Spain III Ancient Spain Louis XIV-XVI Islam India
Chronology : 16th century 1570-1599 1620-1629 18th century 1790-1799 1933 1972
1582-1972 Peregrination of a Pearl
2011 SOLD 11.8 M$ including premium
A pearl made five hundred years ago by an anonymous mollusk in the Gulf of Panama got a fabulous destiny. Used in jewelry of all kinds to meet the changes of fashion, it demonstrates that not only diamonds are forever.
It entered in 1582 into the Spanish royal collection, where it was considered as the biggest pearl in the world. Pear-shaped, it was then weighing 223 grains.
Mary I of England, wife of Philip II of Spain, used it very elegantly as a pendant to a brooch. Philip IV of Spain preferred it as a hat pin. It went to France during the Spanish war of Joseph Bonaparte, and Napoleon III sold it to the English aristocracy.
This wandering pearl has been known for two centuries under the name La Peregrina. It lost twenty grains when it was reworked to improve the security of its setting.
Richard Burton bought it in 1969 at Sotheby's auction as a gift to Elizabeth Taylor.
It was mounted as pendant in a pearl necklace that did not please its new owners. Burton and Taylor then made designed by Cartier in 1972 the magnificent necklace of pearls, rubies and diamonds, where it is again hanging as pendant.
This necklace, estimated $ 2M, is for sale on December 13 in New York by Christie's., lot 12.
POST SALE COMMENT
This is a new successful step in the fabulous history of the pearl. Sold $ 11.8 million including premium, its necklace achieved the highest result in one of the best jewelry sales in auction history: total $ 116M including premium for only 80 lots.
It entered in 1582 into the Spanish royal collection, where it was considered as the biggest pearl in the world. Pear-shaped, it was then weighing 223 grains.
Mary I of England, wife of Philip II of Spain, used it very elegantly as a pendant to a brooch. Philip IV of Spain preferred it as a hat pin. It went to France during the Spanish war of Joseph Bonaparte, and Napoleon III sold it to the English aristocracy.
This wandering pearl has been known for two centuries under the name La Peregrina. It lost twenty grains when it was reworked to improve the security of its setting.
Richard Burton bought it in 1969 at Sotheby's auction as a gift to Elizabeth Taylor.
It was mounted as pendant in a pearl necklace that did not please its new owners. Burton and Taylor then made designed by Cartier in 1972 the magnificent necklace of pearls, rubies and diamonds, where it is again hanging as pendant.
This necklace, estimated $ 2M, is for sale on December 13 in New York by Christie's., lot 12.
POST SALE COMMENT
This is a new successful step in the fabulous history of the pearl. Sold $ 11.8 million including premium, its necklace achieved the highest result in one of the best jewelry sales in auction history: total $ 116M including premium for only 80 lots.
1627-1628 Indian inscribed diamond in a 1972 necklace assembly by Cartier
2011 SOLD for $ 8.8M including premium by Christie's
Link to catalogue.
1791 The Pearls of Queen Marie-Antoinette
2018 SOLD for CHF 36.4M including premium by Sotheby's
narrated in 2020
For her marriage to the future King Louis XVI, Marie-Antoinette received an impressive quantity of diamonds, rubies and pearls from her mother, the Empress Marie Therese, and from her husband's grandfather, King Louis XV. She loved jewelry and kept improving her collection.
During early phase of the Revolution, Marie-Antoinette who is still the Queen plans to flee to Austria. In January 1791, helped by her chambermaid, she prepares a cassette with her favorite jewelry. The jewels reach Vienna but the king and queen are arrested in Varennes in June 1791.
In 1795 Madame Royale, the only survivor of the children of the royal couple, is freed from the revolutionary prisons and goes into exile in Vienna. The emperor Franz II returns the jewels to her while keeping the rubies in compensation for a pension granted to the princess. In Madame Royale's legacy in 1851, one third of the jewelry is attributed to her niece Louise, Duchess of Parma.
Around 1930 Marie-Anne of Austria, wife of the acting Duke of Parma, describes in an inventory four jewels in pearls and diamonds of which she attests that they come from Marie-Antoinette. These pieces, which had never been published or exhibited, were included in the auction of the royal jewelry from the Bourbon-Parma collection by Sotheby's on November 14, 2018.
Lot 97, a three-row pearl necklace with a diamond clasp, was sold for CHF 2.3M including premium over a lower estimate of CHF 200K. The next two lots, a necklace and a pair of earrings, were sold for CHF 450K each including premium.
Lot 100 was a 15.90 x 18.35 x 25.85mm drop shaped pearl assembled in a pendant with a large diamond clasp and a bow of small diamonds. This interesting souvenir of a queen who had desired to live in the utmost luxury was sold for CHF 36.4M including premium over an estimate of CHF 1M to 2M.
During early phase of the Revolution, Marie-Antoinette who is still the Queen plans to flee to Austria. In January 1791, helped by her chambermaid, she prepares a cassette with her favorite jewelry. The jewels reach Vienna but the king and queen are arrested in Varennes in June 1791.
In 1795 Madame Royale, the only survivor of the children of the royal couple, is freed from the revolutionary prisons and goes into exile in Vienna. The emperor Franz II returns the jewels to her while keeping the rubies in compensation for a pension granted to the princess. In Madame Royale's legacy in 1851, one third of the jewelry is attributed to her niece Louise, Duchess of Parma.
Around 1930 Marie-Anne of Austria, wife of the acting Duke of Parma, describes in an inventory four jewels in pearls and diamonds of which she attests that they come from Marie-Antoinette. These pieces, which had never been published or exhibited, were included in the auction of the royal jewelry from the Bourbon-Parma collection by Sotheby's on November 14, 2018.
Lot 97, a three-row pearl necklace with a diamond clasp, was sold for CHF 2.3M including premium over a lower estimate of CHF 200K. The next two lots, a necklace and a pair of earrings, were sold for CHF 450K each including premium.
Lot 100 was a 15.90 x 18.35 x 25.85mm drop shaped pearl assembled in a pendant with a large diamond clasp and a bow of small diamonds. This interesting souvenir of a queen who had desired to live in the utmost luxury was sold for CHF 36.4M including premium over an estimate of CHF 1M to 2M.
Marie Antoinette’s pendant sets auction record for a natural pearl at @Sothebys in Geneva:https://t.co/1glDvfpi3w pic.twitter.com/5z2iNTmd8a
— AntiquesTradeGazette (@ATG_Editorial) November 15, 2018
Qing and 1933 - The Greatest Jadeite Necklace
2014 SOLD 214 MHK$ including premium
The greatest diamonds of Golconda and the most beautiful jade beads from China have a common feature : the history of the extraction of the stone is lost, but only very skilled artists were able to prepare them, a task that could last several years.
The Qing greatly encouraged the work of jade, and their seals in white or green jade are among the masterpieces of their time. The emerald green jadeite was also used in jewelry.
Despite the troubles in the China of the later Qing, the most important sets of jade beads were not mixed or separated. The main quality of a necklace is the homogeneity of its beads. Any change in color, transparency or texture is a lack of taste, and for that purpose the beads must have been carved from a single boulder.
The prestige of jade reached the Western world. A lot of 27 big jadeite beads, between 15.4 and 19.2 mm in diameter, is included in 1933 in the inventory of Cartier. It is mounted in the same year by Cartier as a necklace with a clasp in ruby and diamond, to be offered as a wedding gift to the wealthy Barbara Hutton by her father. As Christina Onassis later, Barbara Hutton had a difficult life. The husband's family kept the precious necklace.
Considered as the greatest jadeite necklace in existence, this jewel twice won the highest auction price in its category : HK $ 15.6 million in 1988 and HK $ 33M in 1994. It is estimated in excess of HK $ 100M, for sale by Sotheby's in Hong Kong on April 7, lot 1847.
For comparison, a necklace of 35 jadeite beads 12.5 to 15 mm in diameter, also equipped with a clasp by Cartier, was sold for HK $ 43M including premium by Sotheby's on April 7, 2010.
POST SALE COMMENT
Pieces that are unique in their kind have no predictable price. The result, HK $ 214M including premium, rewards an extraordinary necklace.
The Qing greatly encouraged the work of jade, and their seals in white or green jade are among the masterpieces of their time. The emerald green jadeite was also used in jewelry.
Despite the troubles in the China of the later Qing, the most important sets of jade beads were not mixed or separated. The main quality of a necklace is the homogeneity of its beads. Any change in color, transparency or texture is a lack of taste, and for that purpose the beads must have been carved from a single boulder.
The prestige of jade reached the Western world. A lot of 27 big jadeite beads, between 15.4 and 19.2 mm in diameter, is included in 1933 in the inventory of Cartier. It is mounted in the same year by Cartier as a necklace with a clasp in ruby and diamond, to be offered as a wedding gift to the wealthy Barbara Hutton by her father. As Christina Onassis later, Barbara Hutton had a difficult life. The husband's family kept the precious necklace.
Considered as the greatest jadeite necklace in existence, this jewel twice won the highest auction price in its category : HK $ 15.6 million in 1988 and HK $ 33M in 1994. It is estimated in excess of HK $ 100M, for sale by Sotheby's in Hong Kong on April 7, lot 1847.
For comparison, a necklace of 35 jadeite beads 12.5 to 15 mm in diameter, also equipped with a clasp by Cartier, was sold for HK $ 43M including premium by Sotheby's on April 7, 2010.
POST SALE COMMENT
Pieces that are unique in their kind have no predictable price. The result, HK $ 214M including premium, rewards an extraordinary necklace.
1880s Blue Sapphires from a High Place
2015 SOLD for HK$ 52M including premium
The discovery of the most beautiful variety of sapphires was by accident. In 1881, a merchant brought from the northwestern Himalayas to Simla a piece of blue stone harder than quartz. Other specimens came down from the mountain and at the beginning of the following year a mineralogist of the Indian Museum found that these were true sapphires.
These Kashmir sapphires are sensational in their saturated color, their transparency and their velvety surface. This balance is obtained by the presence of various impurities in the crystal of corundum : tourmaline, pragasite, zircon, allanite, biotite, garnet and even a natural radioactive tracer, the uraninite. Such a mixing is unique and allows to certify the origin of a sapphire without any information about its history.
Back to the early 1880s. The deposit that had been recently laid bare by a landslide is located in a valley of high altitude that required a week of approach walk. The value of these gems is not immediately understood but the local maharajah is able to control the extraction. In 1888, a geologist delegated by the maharajah finds that the vein is already depleted.
This ephemeral mine produced some big sapphires that reach their whole splendor through an emerald shaped cut in a circle of diamonds. One of them weighing 28.18 carats was sold for $ 5.1 million including premium by Sotheby's on April 29, 2014.
Another sapphire in a similar fashioning is named The Jewel of Kashmir. It weighs 27.68 carats and is estimated HK $ 48M for sale by Sotheby's in Hong Kong on October 7, lot 1860. Nature achieved the perfect balance between velvety and transparency, in a stunning royal blue hue altogether homogeneous and saturated.
These Kashmir sapphires are sensational in their saturated color, their transparency and their velvety surface. This balance is obtained by the presence of various impurities in the crystal of corundum : tourmaline, pragasite, zircon, allanite, biotite, garnet and even a natural radioactive tracer, the uraninite. Such a mixing is unique and allows to certify the origin of a sapphire without any information about its history.
Back to the early 1880s. The deposit that had been recently laid bare by a landslide is located in a valley of high altitude that required a week of approach walk. The value of these gems is not immediately understood but the local maharajah is able to control the extraction. In 1888, a geologist delegated by the maharajah finds that the vein is already depleted.
This ephemeral mine produced some big sapphires that reach their whole splendor through an emerald shaped cut in a circle of diamonds. One of them weighing 28.18 carats was sold for $ 5.1 million including premium by Sotheby's on April 29, 2014.
Another sapphire in a similar fashioning is named The Jewel of Kashmir. It weighs 27.68 carats and is estimated HK $ 48M for sale by Sotheby's in Hong Kong on October 7, lot 1860. Nature achieved the perfect balance between velvety and transparency, in a stunning royal blue hue altogether homogeneous and saturated.
#AuctionUpdate from HK: This 27.68-carat sapphire ring achieves $6.7m, a record price/carat for a Kashmir #sapphire pic.twitter.com/vkiz7Hc1vO
— Sotheby's (@Sothebys) October 7, 20151900 The Tiara of Princess Katharina
2011 SOLD 11.3 MCHF including premium
The tiara is a half-crown that women of the aristocracy wore on the head during imperial or royal ceremonies. Suchantique jewelry has become very rare on the market, perhaps because some were dismantled for reusing components in modern jewel designs.
The Donnersmarck tiara, for sale by Sotheby's in Geneva on May 17, remains intact. It is estimated CHF 4.6 million and illustrated in the article shared by International Business Times.
It is absolutely superb. The rich diamond headband is topped with a fabulous set of eleven emeralds gradually increasing from the center. The total weight of the gemstones is around 500 carats.
The expertise of gems and the habits of prince (Fürst) von Donnersmarck may generate plausible assumptions about the composition of this jewel, created circa 1900 as a gift to his second wife Katharina.
The Colombian origin of the emeralds is guaranteed. They were cut in dropsand polished, probably in India. Donnersmarck had the second largest fortune in Germany and enjoyed Paris, where his first wife, the "Paiva", had hit the society column. At the fall of the Second Empire, he had bought some gems from the collection of the Empress Eugénie, perhaps including some of those emeralds.
He was a customer of major Parisian jewelers, and Sotheby's catalog says that he ordered to Chaumet in 1896 a crown of similar design.
POST SALE COMMENT
Sold CHF 11.3 million including premium, this princely jewel that looks like a royal crown exceeded its higher estimate.
Please watch the video shared by Sotheby's.
The Donnersmarck tiara, for sale by Sotheby's in Geneva on May 17, remains intact. It is estimated CHF 4.6 million and illustrated in the article shared by International Business Times.
It is absolutely superb. The rich diamond headband is topped with a fabulous set of eleven emeralds gradually increasing from the center. The total weight of the gemstones is around 500 carats.
The expertise of gems and the habits of prince (Fürst) von Donnersmarck may generate plausible assumptions about the composition of this jewel, created circa 1900 as a gift to his second wife Katharina.
The Colombian origin of the emeralds is guaranteed. They were cut in dropsand polished, probably in India. Donnersmarck had the second largest fortune in Germany and enjoyed Paris, where his first wife, the "Paiva", had hit the society column. At the fall of the Second Empire, he had bought some gems from the collection of the Empress Eugénie, perhaps including some of those emeralds.
He was a customer of major Parisian jewelers, and Sotheby's catalog says that he ordered to Chaumet in 1896 a crown of similar design.
POST SALE COMMENT
Sold CHF 11.3 million including premium, this princely jewel that looks like a royal crown exceeded its higher estimate.
Please watch the video shared by Sotheby's.
The Queen of Burma and the Graff Ruby
2014 SOLD for CHF 8.3M including premium
The sales of fine jewelry by Christie's and Sotheby's in Geneva are full of great stones, and it is not possible to discuss all of them in this column. It will suffice at this time to introduce two rubies.
On November 11, Christie's sells the Queen of Burma, lot 337 estimated CHF 5,25M.
This large oval ruby weighing 23.66 carats was set on a ring by Cartier and sold by Cartier London in 1937 to a Maharajah. Its color is a saturated pink-red due to a combination of elements that exist nowhere else than in the mines of Mogok.
In the catalog, Christie's compare this lot to the Hope Ruby from the Safra collection, slightly bigger at 32.08 carats, sold by them for CHF 6.2 million including premium on May 14, 2012.
On November 12, Sotheby's sells the Graff Ruby, lot 470estimated CHF 6.5M.
Weighing 8.62 carats, this cushion-shaped ruby is exceptional for its vivid red color named pigeon's blood, a great rarity in its weight range. Its purity and brilliance are excellent. It also can come only from Mogok.
Laurence Graff, who mounted it on a ring, regarded it as the most beautiful ruby he had ever seen. There cannot be a better recommendation for this wonderful gem.
RESULTS INCLUDING PREMIUM
Christie's SOLD for CHF 5.9M the Queen of Burma ruby.
Sotheby's SOLD for CHF 8.3M the Graff ruby
On November 11, Christie's sells the Queen of Burma, lot 337 estimated CHF 5,25M.
This large oval ruby weighing 23.66 carats was set on a ring by Cartier and sold by Cartier London in 1937 to a Maharajah. Its color is a saturated pink-red due to a combination of elements that exist nowhere else than in the mines of Mogok.
In the catalog, Christie's compare this lot to the Hope Ruby from the Safra collection, slightly bigger at 32.08 carats, sold by them for CHF 6.2 million including premium on May 14, 2012.
On November 12, Sotheby's sells the Graff Ruby, lot 470estimated CHF 6.5M.
Weighing 8.62 carats, this cushion-shaped ruby is exceptional for its vivid red color named pigeon's blood, a great rarity in its weight range. Its purity and brilliance are excellent. It also can come only from Mogok.
Laurence Graff, who mounted it on a ring, regarded it as the most beautiful ruby he had ever seen. There cannot be a better recommendation for this wonderful gem.
RESULTS INCLUDING PREMIUM
Christie's SOLD for CHF 5.9M the Queen of Burma ruby.
Sotheby's SOLD for CHF 8.3M the Graff ruby
2013 The Red Emperor
2014 SOLD 77 MHK$ including premium
The best rubies in the world are extracted from the Burmese valley of Mogok in Myanmar. They are the only ones to exhibit both a beautiful crimson red pigeon blood color and an internal crystal structure that enhance the dispersion of light.
Founded in 1905, the Fai Dee company specializes in the jewelry of rubies. Throughout four generations, the Lunia family gathered for the Fai Dee collection rubies of very high quality without heat treatment.
Some of the most beautiful gems were cut by Fai Dee in a period of eight years, from 2005 to 2012, in two of the most difficult ruby shapes, heart and pear. Operating in Bangkok, Fai Dee cooperates from 2009 with James W. Currens, jewellery designer in New York, to create a magnificent necklace that is named the Red Emperor.
Over a 40 cm platinum and yellow gold mount in several registers, the Red Emperor is assembling thirty heart shaped and thirty pear shaped rubies and many white diamonds cut in brilliant, oval and pear. The set was appraised by the GIA in 2013 which is certainly also the date of completion of the necklace. The total weight is 104.5 carats of rubies and 59 carats of diamonds. The biggest ruby is weighing 5.04 carats.
The Red Emperor is estimated HK $ 68M, for sale on April 7 by Sotheby's in Hong Kong, lot 1914 in the catalog.
Here are three results for jewelry made in rubies and diamonds.
From the Elizabeth Taylor estate on December 13, 2011, Christie's sold for $ 4.2 million including premium an oval ruby of 8.24 carats set on a ring by Van Cleef et Arpels in a surrounding of eight diamonds.
A ring by Currens for Fai Dee centered with an oval ruby of 8.88 carats was sold for HK $ 22M including premium by Christie's on May 28, 2013.
A necklace by Fai Dee with a total weight of 48 carats of rubies separated by butterfly diamonds was sold for 18M RMB yuan including premium in the inaugural Christie's sale in Shanghai on September 26, 2013.
POST SALE COMMENT
This magnificent example of the art of contemporary jewelery using the best gems was sold for HK $ 77M including premium.
Founded in 1905, the Fai Dee company specializes in the jewelry of rubies. Throughout four generations, the Lunia family gathered for the Fai Dee collection rubies of very high quality without heat treatment.
Some of the most beautiful gems were cut by Fai Dee in a period of eight years, from 2005 to 2012, in two of the most difficult ruby shapes, heart and pear. Operating in Bangkok, Fai Dee cooperates from 2009 with James W. Currens, jewellery designer in New York, to create a magnificent necklace that is named the Red Emperor.
Over a 40 cm platinum and yellow gold mount in several registers, the Red Emperor is assembling thirty heart shaped and thirty pear shaped rubies and many white diamonds cut in brilliant, oval and pear. The set was appraised by the GIA in 2013 which is certainly also the date of completion of the necklace. The total weight is 104.5 carats of rubies and 59 carats of diamonds. The biggest ruby is weighing 5.04 carats.
The Red Emperor is estimated HK $ 68M, for sale on April 7 by Sotheby's in Hong Kong, lot 1914 in the catalog.
Here are three results for jewelry made in rubies and diamonds.
From the Elizabeth Taylor estate on December 13, 2011, Christie's sold for $ 4.2 million including premium an oval ruby of 8.24 carats set on a ring by Van Cleef et Arpels in a surrounding of eight diamonds.
A ring by Currens for Fai Dee centered with an oval ruby of 8.88 carats was sold for HK $ 22M including premium by Christie's on May 28, 2013.
A necklace by Fai Dee with a total weight of 48 carats of rubies separated by butterfly diamonds was sold for 18M RMB yuan including premium in the inaugural Christie's sale in Shanghai on September 26, 2013.
POST SALE COMMENT
This magnificent example of the art of contemporary jewelery using the best gems was sold for HK $ 77M including premium.
Pigeon Blood from Burma
2015 SOLD for CHF 28M including premium
The color named 'pigeon blood', a vivid and saturated red, is the most prestigious for rubies. A gem in this variant can only come from Mogok in Burma (Myanmar). The cushion cut is perfect for them.
The Hope ruby from the Lily Safra collection was a pigeon blood weighing 32.08 carats mounted on a ring by Chaumet. It was sold for CHF 6.2 million including premium by Christie's on May 14, 2012.
The beauty of a ruby is also closely linked to its internal structure, and the price does not depend only on its weight. Considered as exceptional by Graff, the Graff ruby was sold for CHF 8.3 million including premium by Sotheby's on November 12, 2014, a great price for a stone which weighs only 8.62 carats. Its price per carat is almost competing with the best pink or blue diamonds.
Another pigeon blood wonder, exceptional in its shade and its weight, is for sale at Sotheby's in Geneva on May 12. The Sunrise ruby is weighing 25.59 carats. It was mounted on a ring between two diamonds by Cartier. It is estimated CHF 11.7 million corresponding to US $ 12M, lot 502.
The Hope ruby from the Lily Safra collection was a pigeon blood weighing 32.08 carats mounted on a ring by Chaumet. It was sold for CHF 6.2 million including premium by Christie's on May 14, 2012.
The beauty of a ruby is also closely linked to its internal structure, and the price does not depend only on its weight. Considered as exceptional by Graff, the Graff ruby was sold for CHF 8.3 million including premium by Sotheby's on November 12, 2014, a great price for a stone which weighs only 8.62 carats. Its price per carat is almost competing with the best pink or blue diamonds.
Another pigeon blood wonder, exceptional in its shade and its weight, is for sale at Sotheby's in Geneva on May 12. The Sunrise ruby is weighing 25.59 carats. It was mounted on a ring between two diamonds by Cartier. It is estimated CHF 11.7 million corresponding to US $ 12M, lot 502.
The most valuable ruby ever sold at auction: The Sunrise Ruby sells for US$ 30.3m in Geneva #SothebysJewels pic.twitter.com/s5ezt5Qah8
— Sotheby's (@Sothebys) May 12, 2015The Pigeon Blood Red
2015 SOLD for HK$ 142M including premium
The pigeon blood color, a vivid and saturated red, is the most prestigious for rubies. This variety is extracted from the mines of Mogok in Burma (Myanmar). The chemical analysis of inclusions is used to assess the origin along with the lack of heating treatment.
On 12 November 2014, Sotheby's sold the Graff Ruby for CHF 8.3 million including premium. This cushion cut ruby was considered exceptional by its weight, 8.62 carats.
The sale at Christie's in Hong Kong on December 1 includes no less than three jewels with pigeon blood rubies.
The ruby estimated HK $ 78M at lot 2121 is named The Crimson Flame. Also cushion cut, it weighs 15.04 carats. The Gübelin GemLab observed its high clarity and brilliance and the SSEF Swiss Gemological Institute stated that it can be considered an exceptional treasure. It is mounted on a ring in a pretty surrounding of cushion diamonds.
Lot 2120, estimated HK $ 48M, is a necklace by Faidee named The Mogok's Fiery Red. It consists of 32 rubies alternating with diamonds. The biggest of its rubies is weighing 5.05 carats.
Also signed by Faidee, a pair of ear pendants in rubies and diamonds is estimated HK $ 22,8M at lot 2119. Its rubies are weighing 5.08, 5.03, 2.51 and 2.49 carats.
Faidee is also the creator of the Red Emperor. This necklace was sold for HK $ 77M including premium by Sotheby's on April 7, 2014.
RESULTS INCLUDING PREMIUM :
15.04 carats on ring : HK$ 142M
necklace : HK$ 55M
pendants : HK$ 24M
On 12 November 2014, Sotheby's sold the Graff Ruby for CHF 8.3 million including premium. This cushion cut ruby was considered exceptional by its weight, 8.62 carats.
The sale at Christie's in Hong Kong on December 1 includes no less than three jewels with pigeon blood rubies.
The ruby estimated HK $ 78M at lot 2121 is named The Crimson Flame. Also cushion cut, it weighs 15.04 carats. The Gübelin GemLab observed its high clarity and brilliance and the SSEF Swiss Gemological Institute stated that it can be considered an exceptional treasure. It is mounted on a ring in a pretty surrounding of cushion diamonds.
Lot 2120, estimated HK $ 48M, is a necklace by Faidee named The Mogok's Fiery Red. It consists of 32 rubies alternating with diamonds. The biggest of its rubies is weighing 5.05 carats.
Also signed by Faidee, a pair of ear pendants in rubies and diamonds is estimated HK $ 22,8M at lot 2119. Its rubies are weighing 5.08, 5.03, 2.51 and 2.49 carats.
Faidee is also the creator of the Red Emperor. This necklace was sold for HK $ 77M including premium by Sotheby's on April 7, 2014.
RESULTS INCLUDING PREMIUM :
15.04 carats on ring : HK$ 142M
necklace : HK$ 55M
pendants : HK$ 24M
Christie’s Hong Kong’s Fall Sales Total $340.7M: https://t.co/6d8mWicq8Q pic.twitter.com/Gzehx9b9rN
— ARTINFO HongKong (@ARTINFOHongKong) December 2, 2015Jubilee from Mogok
2016 SOLD for $ 14.2M including premium
As far as rubies are concerned the stones extracted in the small valley of Mogok in northern Burma are second to none thanks to a significant content of chromium in the ground. Their magnificent brightness reaches the fluorescence and the best gems have a perfect clarity within a high saturation.
The rubies of Mogok with the top quality reach $ 1M per carat. Recent examples at auction were cushion cut.
The Graff Ruby weighing 8.62 carats was sold for CHF 8.3 million including premium by Sotheby's on November 12, 2014. The Sunrise Ruby weighing 25.59 carats was sold for CHF 28M including premium by Sotheby's on May 12, 2015. The Crimson Flame weighing 15.04 carats was sold for HK $ 142M including premium by Christie's on December 1, 2015.
An oval cut, when it is feasible, further accentuates the beauty of a ruby. The Jubilee Ruby weighing 15.99 carats is almost circular and has all the other characteristics of a perfect ruby. Mounted on a ring by Verdura within a circle of diamonds, it is estimated $ 12M for sale by Christie's in New York on April 20, lot 255.
I invite you to admire the Jubilee Ruby in the video shared by Christie's. Its name is possibly by reference to the 250th anniversary of the auction house.
The rubies of Mogok with the top quality reach $ 1M per carat. Recent examples at auction were cushion cut.
The Graff Ruby weighing 8.62 carats was sold for CHF 8.3 million including premium by Sotheby's on November 12, 2014. The Sunrise Ruby weighing 25.59 carats was sold for CHF 28M including premium by Sotheby's on May 12, 2015. The Crimson Flame weighing 15.04 carats was sold for HK $ 142M including premium by Christie's on December 1, 2015.
An oval cut, when it is feasible, further accentuates the beauty of a ruby. The Jubilee Ruby weighing 15.99 carats is almost circular and has all the other characteristics of a perfect ruby. Mounted on a ring by Verdura within a circle of diamonds, it is estimated $ 12M for sale by Christie's in New York on April 20, lot 255.
I invite you to admire the Jubilee Ruby in the video shared by Christie's. Its name is possibly by reference to the 250th anniversary of the auction house.
As Beautiful as Blue Feathers
2018 SOLD for HK$ 117M including premium
The rarity of blue sapphires from Kashmir has a well identified cause : their unique vein in the mountains was exhausted in 1887 after seven years of mining. Their saturated color, velvety texture and brilliance are unique.
The constitution of a collection to make a necklace is a patient work that can extend over several generations. After being cut into a homogeneous shape, the stones are assembled in a sequence of gradual dimensions.
On November 27 in Hong Kong, Christie's sells the Peacock Necklace, lot 2068 estimated HK $ 95M. Please watch the video shared by the auction house, revealing that it took almost a hundred years to gather the gems and more than fifteen years to prepare the jewel.
On a platinum necklace 39.5 cm long, 21 Kashmir sapphires are interspersed with white diamonds. All these stones have a cushion shape. The weight of the sapphires ranges between 10.56 and 3.02 carats for a total of 109.08 carats which is staggering in their class. The diamonds are between 4 and 1 carats.
On April 7, 2014, Sotheby's sold for HK $ 77M including premium the Red Emperor, a necklace of pigeon's blood rubies assembled in 2013 amidst diamonds after being collected by a specialized company created in 1905. As for the Peacock Necklace, the utmost care had been taken in the homogeneity of the prestigious color.
The constitution of a collection to make a necklace is a patient work that can extend over several generations. After being cut into a homogeneous shape, the stones are assembled in a sequence of gradual dimensions.
On November 27 in Hong Kong, Christie's sells the Peacock Necklace, lot 2068 estimated HK $ 95M. Please watch the video shared by the auction house, revealing that it took almost a hundred years to gather the gems and more than fifteen years to prepare the jewel.
On a platinum necklace 39.5 cm long, 21 Kashmir sapphires are interspersed with white diamonds. All these stones have a cushion shape. The weight of the sapphires ranges between 10.56 and 3.02 carats for a total of 109.08 carats which is staggering in their class. The diamonds are between 4 and 1 carats.
On April 7, 2014, Sotheby's sold for HK $ 77M including premium the Red Emperor, a necklace of pigeon's blood rubies assembled in 2013 amidst diamonds after being collected by a specialized company created in 1905. As for the Peacock Necklace, the utmost care had been taken in the homogeneity of the prestigious color.
