Auction - Jewellery
The best facts to consider when buying jewellery
By 1909, Cartier shop fronts on Fifth Avenue, rue de la Paix |
and New Bond Street glittered with stones from far beyond New York, Paris and London. ‘They might recreate a 19th-century carved jade lion-and-cub figurine from China, place the lion upon an onyx-and-coral stand with cabochon sapphire details, drill a dent through the top and fit unknown clock produced from a large faceted citrine,’ says Warren.
An Art Deco diamond bracelet, by Cartier. Designed to be a wide old European and single-cut diamond pierced band of “fleurette” design, mounted in platinum and 18k gold, 1923. 7¼ in, with French assay mark and maker’s mark, inside a Cartier red leather case. This piece and the ones below were offered within the Important Jewels sale on 16 June 2015 in New York. Sold for $461,000
An Art Deco diamond bracelet, by Cartier. Designed to be a wide old European and single-cut diamond pierced band of “fleurette” design, mounted in platinum and 18k gold, 1923. 7¼ in, with French assay mark and maker’s mark, inside a Cartier red leather case. This piece and the ones below were offered within the Important Jewels sale on 16 June 2015 in New York. Sold for $461,000
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Elsewhere, the intricate latticework of Islamic architecture might influence the contour or decoration of an vanity case or jewel, even though the fall of tassels while on an Indian turban might dictate the dangle of coral beads or perhaps a string of pearls.
Closer to home, Louis Cartier would send draughtsmen to generate sketches of wrought-iron Parisian balconies which may become the filigree of your tiara. Because of its clean, linear style, Art Deco-period Cartier has proved particularly robust resistant to the whims of fashion. ‘Jewels are worn with fashionable dresses,’ says Warren, however, ‘so fashion is necessary.’
Closer to home, Louis Cartier would send draughtsmen to generate sketches of wrought-iron Parisian balconies which may become the filigree of your tiara. Because of its clean, linear style, Art Deco-period Cartier has proved particularly robust resistant to the whims of fashion. ‘Jewels are worn with fashionable dresses,’ says Warren, however, ‘so fashion is necessary.’
- Colours which make your spine tingle
- A Coloured Diamond and Diamond Pendant Necklace
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Suspending a pear-shaped diamond, weighing approximately 5.06 carats, trimmed with circular-cut diamonds, plus a modified pear-shaped fancy purplish pink diamond, weighing approximately 1.68 carats, to your fine link neckchain, mounted in platinum, 16 in. Sold for $317,000
All have to be tested to create sure the colors were created |
of course, not man. Warren recommends the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) for diamonds and also the Swiss laboratories for coloured gemstones. ‘Those laboratories develop the best reputation,’ he states.
‘If you possess a wine beverage up to strong sunlight, you receive close for the ideal dark-green colour of the Muzo-mine emerald,’ he continues. ‘For rubies, the right colour is often a darkish pigeon-blood red. Too dark this means you will look rather gloomy.’
One thing Warren loves to do should be to to take the most effective stones from Christie’s jewellery auctions in Hong Kong, London and New York, and line them up. Differences hard to explain then become apparent. ‘Kashmir sapphires can be described as hazy or sleepy,’ he states. ‘They might have masses of microscopic inclusions, even when they’re not visible to your naked eye, that induce the hazy blue colour. By contrast, Ceylon stones usually are quite transparent and glass-like.’
‘If you possess a wine beverage up to strong sunlight, you receive close for the ideal dark-green colour of the Muzo-mine emerald,’ he continues. ‘For rubies, the right colour is often a darkish pigeon-blood red. Too dark this means you will look rather gloomy.’
One thing Warren loves to do should be to to take the most effective stones from Christie’s jewellery auctions in Hong Kong, London and New York, and line them up. Differences hard to explain then become apparent. ‘Kashmir sapphires can be described as hazy or sleepy,’ he states. ‘They might have masses of microscopic inclusions, even when they’re not visible to your naked eye, that induce the hazy blue colour. By contrast, Ceylon stones usually are quite transparent and glass-like.’
- Left: A Sapphire and Diamond Ring
Set that has a rectangular-cut Ceylon sapphire, weighing approximately 27.83 carats, flanked on spare on both by a triangular-cut diamond, mounted in 18k gold, with French assay mark and maker's mark. Sold for $845,000. Right: A Fine Sapphire and Diamond Ring. Set that has a cushion-cut Kashmir sapphire, weighing approximately 9.97 carats, to your circular-cut diamond shoulders, mounted in platinum. Sold for $1,145,000
Small and fine is usually preferable to large and opaque. ‘You may have a 50-carat emerald, but when it’s brimming with inclusions, who cares?’ Warren explains. ‘What you desire is an 8-to-10-carat gem — worth $40,000 to $60,000 a carat — instead of a 50-carat stone that’s worth $2,000 to $3,000 a carat.’
The portability of jewels makes up about some on the demand. ‘You can’t get a house inside middle of Paris, so when the market drops move it to London’ he eplains. ‘But it is possible to fit diamonds for your top pocket.’
Warren has witnessed some incredible price increases. ‘If you needed bought coloured diamonds from the 1970s and sold them from the 1990s, you'd probably have made a major profit,’ he tells. ‘And if you experienced bought them inside 1990s and were selling them now, your profit will be vast.’
The mystique of past owners will add value. After a ferocious table-tennis match between Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton — two famous aficionados on the game — Taylor emerged the winner. Her prize was a diamond ring ring. She was rubbing her hands because the pair went shopping. What would she get — a 20-carat? A 50-carat? Burton over fulfilled his promise, buying her three rings. But he select the tiniest diamonds he can find in all the shops in Gstaad. Just over four decades later, her Ping Pong rings, as these are known — set with diamonds of just half a carat each — sold at Christie’s New York for $134,500.
But people are not impressed by famous past owners. ‘I was around the telephone which has a client in America who wanted to get a beautiful set of pearl earrings which are once of Queen Victoria,’ he recalls. ‘He won everyone at auction and believed to me afterwards: “So who had been this Victoria lady anyway?” Although the piece were built with a distinguished history, the guy wanted them solely with regards to quality.’
Small and fine is usually preferable to large and opaque. ‘You may have a 50-carat emerald, but when it’s brimming with inclusions, who cares?’ Warren explains. ‘What you desire is an 8-to-10-carat gem — worth $40,000 to $60,000 a carat — instead of a 50-carat stone that’s worth $2,000 to $3,000 a carat.’
- Portability, price increases along with the prestige mounted on previous owners
The portability of jewels makes up about some on the demand. ‘You can’t get a house inside middle of Paris, so when the market drops move it to London’ he eplains. ‘But it is possible to fit diamonds for your top pocket.’
Warren has witnessed some incredible price increases. ‘If you needed bought coloured diamonds from the 1970s and sold them from the 1990s, you'd probably have made a major profit,’ he tells. ‘And if you experienced bought them inside 1990s and were selling them now, your profit will be vast.’
The mystique of past owners will add value. After a ferocious table-tennis match between Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton — two famous aficionados on the game — Taylor emerged the winner. Her prize was a diamond ring ring. She was rubbing her hands because the pair went shopping. What would she get — a 20-carat? A 50-carat? Burton over fulfilled his promise, buying her three rings. But he select the tiniest diamonds he can find in all the shops in Gstaad. Just over four decades later, her Ping Pong rings, as these are known — set with diamonds of just half a carat each — sold at Christie’s New York for $134,500.
But people are not impressed by famous past owners. ‘I was around the telephone which has a client in America who wanted to get a beautiful set of pearl earrings which are once of Queen Victoria,’ he recalls. ‘He won everyone at auction and believed to me afterwards: “So who had been this Victoria lady anyway?” Although the piece were built with a distinguished history, the guy wanted them solely with regards to quality.’
- It’s not every about vintage
In modern times, contemporary jewellers have provoked fierce bidding wars. In the November sale recently, a parrot tulip bangle highlighted using a sprinkling of diamonds from the Paris-based jeweller JAR (Joel Arthur Rosenthal, see below) sold for $3,649,493, well above its estimate of $200,000–300,000.
A Gold, Diamond and Green Garnet 'Parrot Tulip' Bangle, by JAR. Designed like a sculpted gold flower, the 2 main petals with the base forming the hinged cuff, enhanced by single-cut diamonds and circular-cut green garnets, 1994, flower size 9.5 cm, in pink leather fitted JAR case. Sold for $3,649,493 in this Geneva Magnificent Jewels sale in November 2014
There are brilliant contemporary designers working worldwide: Lorenz Bäumer in Paris, Vicente Gracia in Valencia, and Michelle Ong, Wallace Chan and Edmond Chin in Hong Kong. A client of Warren’s who owned some 1980s sapphire and diamond jewellery by Gérard sent rid of it to be redesigned by JAR. He returned a cross of five sapphires which has a pavé diamond border.
‘I’m sorry for Gérard that his legacy didn’t continue to exist in that piece,’ says Warren. ‘But it is one on the top creations with a true genius, the contemporary same as Fabergé. It’s a fat and chunky cross that produces you smile to see. And the sapphires are extremely beautiful they create you cry.’
A Gold, Diamond and Green Garnet 'Parrot Tulip' Bangle, by JAR. Designed like a sculpted gold flower, the 2 main petals with the base forming the hinged cuff, enhanced by single-cut diamonds and circular-cut green garnets, 1994, flower size 9.5 cm, in pink leather fitted JAR case. Sold for $3,649,493 in this Geneva Magnificent Jewels sale in November 2014
There are brilliant contemporary designers working worldwide: Lorenz Bäumer in Paris, Vicente Gracia in Valencia, and Michelle Ong, Wallace Chan and Edmond Chin in Hong Kong. A client of Warren’s who owned some 1980s sapphire and diamond jewellery by Gérard sent rid of it to be redesigned by JAR. He returned a cross of five sapphires which has a pavé diamond border.
‘I’m sorry for Gérard that his legacy didn’t continue to exist in that piece,’ says Warren. ‘But it is one on the top creations with a true genius, the contemporary same as Fabergé. It’s a fat and chunky cross that produces you smile to see. And the sapphires are extremely beautiful they create you cry.’
- And one final bit of all-important advice
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