Upcoming Auctions: Important Jewels at Christie's New York

Following Christie’s impressive $118 million jewelry auction in Hong Kong earlier this week and establishing a new record for the most valuable jewelry auction ever held in Asia (see the highlights here), Christie’s officially announced today the highlights of its upcoming sale of Important Jewels on June 16 in New York.

This annual pre-summer event provides a fitting conclusion to the spring season of Christie’s worldwide jewelry auctions and features over 200 lots, including a diverse display of colored and colorless diamonds, rare gemstones, and signed designer jewels. The total sale is expected to achieve $18 million.

Jewels Highlights

From modest beginnings in 1946 in Detroit, Michigan, Mrs. Margaret Adderley Kelly (pictured below), her husband, the late William R. Kelly and their son, Mr. Terence E. Adderley, shaped Kelly Services, Inc. into a Fortune 500 company that now employs over 550,000 people globally. Philanthropy was a cornerstone of her life and many organizations benefitted from her immense generosity.

In addition, jewels and fine gemstones were one of Mrs. Kelly’s greatest passions, and she demonstrated to be a collector with the discerning eye of a great connoisseur. The breadth of the collection represented a testament to her love for the exceptional, rare, and beautiful. On June 16, Christie’s will offer The Magnificent Jewels of Margaret Adderley Kelly, highlights of which include an Art Deco diamond pendant necklace suspending a D-color, Internally Flawless diamond of 16.24 carats and The Kelly Sapphire: a Kashmir sapphire of 21.71 carats, by Cartier, both represented here below:

AN ART DECO DIAMOND PENDANT NECKLACE A PEAR-SHAPED D-COLOR INTERNALLY FLAWLESS DIAMOND OF 16.24 CARATS ESTIMATE: $1,600,000 – $2,000,000

THE KELLY SAPPHIRE A CUSHION-CUT KASHMIR SAPPHIRE OF 21.71 CARATS, BY CARTIER ESTIMATE: $1,500,000 – $2,000,000 — THE KELLY SAPPHIRE
A CUSHION-CUT KASHMIR SAPPHIRE OF 21.71 CARATS, BY CARTIER ESTIMATE: $1,500,000 – $2,000,000

In keeping with Christie’s strong track record of presenting the most exceptional colored and colorless diamonds and precious gemstones for sale, the top lot of the June 16 auction is an impressive cushion-cut K- color diamond of 80.73 carats. Additional highlights here in the gallery (click on an image to admire it full size):

CUSHION-CUT K-COLOR DIAMOND OF 80.73 CARATS ESTIMATE: $3,000,000 – $5,000,000

A PAIR OF DIAMOND EAR PENDANTS OF 6.10 AND 6.09 CARATS ESTIMATE: $200,000 – $300,000

A CUSHION-CUT K-COLOR VS2 DIAMOND OF 25.82 CARATS ESTIMATE: $600,000 – $700,000

A CUT-CORNERED FANCY YELLOW DIAMOND OF 14.49 CARATS, BY GRAFF ESTIMATE: $250,000 – $350,000

A CUSHION-CUT FANCY INTENSE YELLOW VS2 DIAMOND OF 28.02 CARATS ESTIMATE: $700,000 – $900,000

THE MAJESTIC BLUE A CUSHION-CUT KASHMIR SAPPHIRE OF 9.97 CARATS ESTIMATE: $950,000 – $1,250,000

A CUT-CORNERED STEP-CUT DIAMOND OF 15.54, BY CARTIER ESTIMATE: $330,000 – $450,000

An oval-cut Colombian emerald of 7.27 carats ESTIMATE: $260,000 – $300,000

Signed creations by world-renowned design houses such as Cartier, Graff, Tiffany & Co., and Van Cleef & Arpels continue to command strong prices at Christie’s jewelry auctions worldwide. Each of these highly respected Maisons has their own signature style of design and craftsmanship, making their jewels unique and highly sought-after among collectors and connoisseurs – and also very likely to retain or increase in value over the long term. Highlights of the signed jewels section of Christie’s Important Jewels sale include the following:

AN ART DECO DIAMOND BRACELET, BY CARTIER ESTIMATE: $380,000 – $450,000

A COLORED DIAMOND, DIAMOND, EMERALD AND ENAMEL TIGER AND CUB BROOCH, BY VAN CLEEF & ARPELS ESTIMATE: $100,000 – $150,000

A CHALCEDONY, DIAMOND AND GOLD CUFF BRACELET, BY TIFFANY & CO. ESTIMATE: $8,000 – $12,000

A DIAMOND, EMERALD AND WHITE GOLD “PANTHÈRE” RING, BY CARTIER ESTIMATE: $40,000 – $50,000

Finally, here is a little gallery of additional, exceptional jewels I personally loved while going through the auction’s lots:

A PEAR-SHAPED D-COLOR DIAMOND OF 5.06 CARATS AND A PEAR-SHAPED FANCY PURPLISH PINK DIAMOND OF 1.68 CARATS PENDANT NECKLACE ESTIMATE: $280,000 – $350,000

AN IMPRESSIVE DIAMOND RING Set with a rectangular-cut diamond, weighing approximately 22.31 carats, flanked on either side by a tapered baguette-cut diamond, mounted in platinum.

A PAIR OF DIAMOND EAR PENDANTS, BY GRAFF Each suspending articulated circular-cut diamond hoops, centering upon a circular-cut diamond, weighing approximately 1.02 and 1.01 carats, with a circular-cut diamond fringe, to the surmount of similar design, mounted in 18k white gold.

A SET OF DIAMOND JEWELRY, BY JAHAN Comprising a tapered circular, baguette and marquise-cut diamond bib necklace, suspending a fringe of graduated marquise and circular-cut diamonds, bordered by circular-cut diamonds; and a pair of ear pendants en suite, mounted in 18k white gold.

Post edited by Claudia Carletti, Jewellery Through Time. All material courtesy of Christie’s.