Despite the recession, diamond sales continue to perform well. When comparing sales figures for In recent months both Christie”s and Sotheby”s auction houses have suffered badly due to the recession. However they both have recently confirmed that one sector that both see positive positive sales figures are diamonds sales.
According to the New York Times article, David Bennet, chairman of Sotheby’s jewelry departments in Europe and the Middle East, is quoted at recent auctions “it felt like being back in the good old days of the mid-1990s.”
In recent auction lots, the “Star of Josephine,” a vivid blue colored diamond, with a weight of 7.03 carats., sold for $9.48 million equivalent to just over $1.34 million a carat, making it the most expensive gem per carat ever sold in any auction. At a similar period in an auction in Geneva, a rare pink pear diamond weighing almost 5.29 carats, sold for over $2.04 million, or $385,633 per carat.
Also selling well were jewelry pieces that were either already collectible, or interpreted by the market as being collectible.
Tiaras necklaces and earrings all with documented ownership by European royalty at times almost quadrupled their estimates. For example, a pair of ear clips described as “the property of a German Princely and Liechtenstein Ruling Family,” did just that when it just barely missed sold for $420,000.
Because of the desire for collectible pieces, 1950s, 1960s and early 1970s stamped and marked pieces by famous designers are also doing well. A mystery set by Van Cleef & Arpels designed in the form of two intertwined leaves set with sapphires and diamonds hauled in $112,845, well over the expected price.