Christie’s 2013 Jewelry Sales Sets Record Annual Figure
January 26, 14
 The Orange diamond which |
The figure was 18 percent higher than its 2012 total, and beats its previous highest annual jewelry record of $600 million set in 2011, which included The Elizabeth Taylor Collection – the most valuable sale of jewelry in auction history.
Christie’s Geneva led the company’s jewelry sales with $228.4 million following the sale of The Winston Legacy in May and The Orange diamond in November.
"Each one of Christie’s major sales regions orchestrated auctions of some of the most significant diamonds in the global auction market, holding six of the year’s top 10 jewels sold at auction in 2013," the firm said in a statement. Over 120 jewels sold in excess of $1 million, 14 lots sold above $5 million, and five above $10 million.
"Colored and colorless diamonds, natural pearls, distinguished private collections, and three successful online-only jewelry auctions all contributed to this tremendous leap in Christie’s results. With many new buyers in Europe, the U.S., and Asia actively participating at a high level, competition has become more intense than ever for rare jewels and gems of only the highest quality."
François Curiel, International Head of Jewelry and President of Christie’s Asia, noted: “In 1994, Christie’s worldwide jewelry sales totaled $190 million, with Geneva, London, and New York as our most important centers, where top-quality gemstones traded at $80,000 per carat. In November 2013, at Christie’s Geneva, we sold The Orange for a world record price of $35.5 million at $2.4 million per carat and achieved $125.3 million in one sale.
"Last year, the prices achieved and the records set soared above all previous records and raised the jewelry auction market to an entirely new level. The top 10 jewels sold at Christie’s demonstrate jewelry as art – gemstones of such quality they will perhaps only be seen once in a lifetime.”