Sotheby's Sets World Auction Records for Colored Stones in Geneva
Nov 13, 2014 9:12 AM By Francesco Rosa RAPAPORT... Sotheby's Geneva autumn sale of magnificent jewels highlighted extremely strong results for colored stones, confirming the upward trend in prices for top-quality rubies, sapphires and emeralds, as well as the good health of the market for better quality goods in all other categories of white and colored diamonds, natural pearls, fine period jewels and signed pieces. In all, the auction garnered $95,272,767 and was 90.2 percent sold by lot.
The unquestionable star of the sale was a superb Graff ruby, pictured, an 8.62-carat cushion-shaped Burmese ruby, which sold for $8,600,410, setting both a new world auction record price for a ruby and a new world auction record at $997,727 per carat. The exceptional gem was purchased, for the second time in nearly nine years, by renowned luxury jeweler Laurence Graff.
Adding momentum to colored stones prices, an exceptional step-cut Kashmir sapphire and diamond ring of 27.54 carats sold for $5,984,474 and set a new world auction record price for a Kashmir sapphire. White and colored diamonds also recorded strong prices.
The second top lot of the evening was a highly important pair of oval diamond earrings of 20.05 carats and 20.06 carats, both D color, flawless, excellent polish and symmetry and type IIa that sold for $7,147,112, or $178,188 per carat. A rare fancy intense blue diamond ring of 3.16 carats also sold to Graff for $3,194,141, or $1,010,804 per carat. Exceptional prices were also achieved by natural pearls, which appeared in the top 10 list of highest recorded prices both at Sotheby's sale and at Christie's sale the day before.Â