A 17.97-carat Burmese ruby and diamond ring was the top seller at a recent jewelry sale at Phillips in Geneva, raking in $5.4 million.
The piece, which fell just shy of its $5.5 million high estimate, went on the block at the November 11 Geneva Jewels Auction: Three, Phillips said Tuesday. In total, the sale brought in $13.8 million, with 77% of the 112 lots finding buyers.
“We are pleased with the overall result,” said Benoit Repellin, worldwide head of jewelry for Phillips. “We continued to build on the strong momentum of recent sales featuring exceptional colored gemstones.”
One piece that didn’t sell was a 3.24-carat, fancy-vivid-blue diamond ring that was forecast to bring in up to $6 million. That lot was withdrawn prior to the sale, in agreement with the consignor, Phillips told Rapaport News. A source close to the auction houses explained that the reason an item is usually pulled from a sale beforehand is because it hasn’t generated enough interest to make its estimated price.
Here are the other pieces that rounded out the top 10:
This ring, containing a step-cut, 20.49-carat Colombian emerald, sold for $1.5 million, beating its $1 million high estimate. The Red Miracle, a ring set with a cut-cornered rectangular-cut, 1.21-carat, fancy-red, SI2-clarity diamond surrounded by heart-shaped and brilliant-cut diamonds and pink sapphires brought in $1.1 million against an $800,000 upper price. Van Cleef & Arpels made this pair of earrings, with cabochon emeralds weighing 19.08 and 18.92 carats and marquise-diamonds accents. The set fetched $403,605, just above its low presale estimate. Phillips sold this ring bearing a round-cornered rectangular-cut, 1.36-carat, fancy-intense-blue, internally flawless, type IIb diamond surrounded by pink and white diamonds for $403,605, within its predicted range. A marquise-shaped, 7-carat, D-color, VVS1-clarity diamond ring with modified kite-shaped diamond shoulders garnered $318,153, well above its $200,000 top price. This necklace, consisting of four rows of natural pearls with a diamond clasp, achieved $303,691, more than triple its $100,000 high estimate. Featuring a cushion-shaped, 9-carat Ceylon sapphire within a diamond halo, this ring raked in $209,692, surpassing its $180,000 upper price. A necklace composed of two rows of oval and cushion-shaped Burmese rubies and step-cut, oval and brilliant-cut diamonds brought in $201,816, missing its $220,000 lower estimate. Set with a cushion-shaped, 25.86-carat Ceylon sapphire and diamonds, this Bulgari ring sold for $187,391, within its presale price range.
Main image: The ruby and diamond ring. (Phillips)
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