2003

103.8-ct. Stone Fails to Sell at Sotheby's, Smaller Diamonds Sell Well

Dec. 2003

Though a largely publicized diamond—a 103.83 ct. flawless D color stone—disappointed Sotheby’s by not finding a buyer at the magnificent jewelry auction in November, Sotheby’s did register several important diamond sales—primarily fancy colors.

The much-hyped stone, the largest D color internally flawless stone, was estimated to fetch up to $10 million, but went unsold.

Top sales, meanwhile, were:

A 5.07 ct. fancy intense pink diamond sold for $1.77 million, or $349,155 per carat.

A pair of fancy vivid blue diamond earrings, weighing 4.06 ct. and featuring 5.39 ct. of white diamond accents fetched $1,555,650.

A 13.99 ct. D-color, internally flawless diamond ring, which sold for $757,260, or $54,128 per carat

A 10.57 fancy vivid yellow stone sold for $718,630, or $67,987 per carat.

The auction season, however, is far from over, with Sotheby's holding a high-profile jewelry sale December 12 in New York. Among the diamond pieces on the block this time around are several rare fancy colored diamonds: a fancy colored diamond pendant, expected to fetch up to $1.2 million, features a fancy green-blue briolette weighing 8.81 cts and three other blue-ish diamonds as accents; a 13.09 ct. fancy pink-purple stone is also for sale, featuring a GIA report determining that the predominant color is purple (price estimate available only on request), and a fancy vivid blue 5 ct. emerald cut diamond ring is expected to fetch $1.25 to $1.75 million.

Fancy Prices For Fancy Stones At Christie’s

Christie’s top sales were fancy colors, two of which fetched high per-carat prices:

A cushion-shaped fancy vivid green-blue diamond of 1.11 cts and VS1 clarity for $423,247, or $381,000 per carat

A 2.11-ct. fancy vivid blue diamond, internally flawless, for $386,847, or $183,000 per carat.

Other diamond sales at Christie’s were:

A cut-cornered rectangular cut 24.99 ct. F color, VVS1 stone fetched the highest bid of the auction--$696,300, or $27,863 per carat

A 10.96 ct. D color, internally flawless cushion-cut diamond sold for $466,700-or $42,582 per carat