Sotheby’s Geneva Magnificent Jewels auction garnered $50 million

Sotheby’s Geneva Magnificent Jewels auction garnered $50 million.

A number of items set records at the sale, including a 20.16-carat sapphire and diamond ring from Cartier. That piece, which fetched $2.8 million, saw a record price per carat for any blue sapphire of Burmese origin ever sold at auction. A 20.58-carat, pink sapphire ring also broke the record for per-carat price, bringing in $1.9 million, or $91,690 per carat. A pink sapphire and diamond brooch weighing 92.01 carats by Jean Schlumberger sold for $1.8 million.

Another notable item at the sale was a pair of unmounted oval-cut, D-flawless diamonds weighing 20.03 and 20.19 carats. The duo fetched $4.2 million, within estimates. A step-cut, 33.13-carat, D-color, VVS1-clarity diamond ring by Cartier brought in $2.9 million, also within its expected range.

Meanwhile, blue diamond weighing more than 5 carats failed to find a buyer at Sotheby’s Geneva.

The cushion brilliant-cut, 5.53-carat, fancy-vivid-blue diamond is part of an eight-piece group called the De Beers Exceptional Blue Collection, which Sotheby’s has spread between its various Magnificent Jewels sales. The piece carried a presale estimate of $11 million to $15 million.

“The blue is an exceptional stone in every sense,” Sotheby’s told Rapaport News Thursday. “It attracted significant interest prior to yesterday’s sale. While we didn’t get to see it sell in the room last night, we are confident it will find a new home very soon.”