An exceptionally rare pink diamond necklace signed and numbered by Cartier sold for £190,000 (plus buyer’s premium) in the Fine Jewellery, Watches and Silver Sale at Tennants Auctioneers, North Yorkshire on Saturday 15th March.
When the 8.62 carat diamond was first inspected, Tennants’ Jewellery Specialist Jessica Fall thought there could potentially be some colouration in the diamond, and following consultation with the Gemmological Institution of America (GIA) the gem was officially graded as very light pink with a clarity grading of VVS1 which is defined as ‘just below flawless: of high clarity’. The diamond, which was sold by a private vendor from North Yorkshire, is currently presented as a necklace with a simple white claw setting by Cartier, which is detachable from a pendant mount, potentially allowing for varied use.
Jessica said: “Pink diamonds are officially defined as ‘exceptionally rare’; some estimates suggest as few as one in 10,000 gem-quality diamonds mined worldwide show any discernible colour. Of that small number, a similar percentage (approximately 0.01%) have a pink tone. It has been a privilege to be able to handle a diamond of such rarity and beauty, and we were delighted to achieve such a fantastic result for our vendor”.
In addition to this exceptional diamond drawing interest from around the world, strong prices continued across the sale, with further notable hammer prices being achieved for a Four Row Graduated Cultured Pearl Necklace with a Victorian Diamond Clasp (sold for £35,000), an Early to Mid-Victorian Sapphire and Diamond Brooch (sold for £5,800), and an 18 Carat Gold Star Sapphire Swivel Ring (sold for £4,200). Jewellery by leading makers sold very well too, with a Van Cleef & Arpels Mother-of-Pearl Alhambra Necklace and Earring Suite selling for £10,000, a Pair of Diamond Hoop Earrings by Cartier selling for £4,500, and a Diamond Panthère Pin by Cartier selling for £3,500 – all well above pre-sale estimates.
The silver section of the sale was led by a charming Fabergé Gem-Set Silver-Mounted Sandstone Match-Holder in the form of an elephant; by tradition gifted to an ancestor of the vendor by the Curzon-Howe-Herrick family of Clifton Castle, it sold for £10,000. A good Elizabeth I Silver Communion Cup and Paten with maker’s mark ‘IP’ in a Shaped Shield and dated London 1573 sold for £7,000, and an Elizabeth I Silver Seal-Top Spoon by William Cawdell of London, 1596 sold for £1,900. Exceeding its pre-sale estimate, too, was an Elizabeth II Silver Stirrup-Cup modelled as a greyhound’s head and made by Richard Comyns of London in 1965, which sold for £950; it was sold with provenance from Robert Burdon, a judge of the Waterloo Cup.
Leading the watches in the sale was a good Jaeger LeCoultre Lady’s 18 Carat White Gold Diamond Set Reverso Watch, which sold for £5,000. With buyers looking for unusual features and good patina, strong prices were achieved for a rare 1967 Omega Seamaster 300 with a nicely patinated dial (sold for £3,800) and a Rolex Oysterdate from 1956 which had an unusual ‘Roulette’ black and red date wheel (sold for £2,500). Military wristwatches continue to be highly collectable at auction, and two seldom-seen examples sold particularly well; a rare Omega Royal Air Force ‘Thin Arrow’ Wristwatch issued in 1953 sold for £4,200, and a Hanhart Second World War German Luftwaffe Pilots Wristwatch sold for £3,500.
The sale realised a total hammer price of £604,869 for the 301 lots, and a 91% sold rate.
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