Sotheby's November 2013 auction in Geneva saw several records broken, including the highest price ever paid for a gemstone - $83.02 million for the 59.6 ct Pink Star diamond. Christie's November auction also set records, including the highest per-carat price of $2.4 million for the 14.82 ct Orange diamond. Overall strong demand from wealthy Asian buyers for rare gems and jewelry led to record sales for Christie's and Sotheby's in 2013, with economists predicting even stronger demand and higher prices in 2014.

1. The Orange, a 14.82 ct Fancy Vivid orange diamond, fetched a record $2.4 million per
carat. It was the centerpiece of Christie’s Nov. sale in Geneva, which brought the
highest auction total ever—$125.4 million. Photo by Christie’s Images Ltd. 2013,
courtesy of Denis Hayoun Diode SA Geneva.
The world’s two leading auction houses are gearing up for another extraordinary year.
In 2013, Christie’s and Sotheby’s posted record jewelry sales of $678 million and $600
million, respectively, through auctions of mega diamonds, rare colored gems and classic
period jewels. Economists predict the demand for ultra-luxury items that drove these
auction numbers should be even stronger in 2014.
Three landmark diamonds in 2013 contributed to the record-breaking sales:
 The highest price ever paid for a gemstone: Sotheby’s estimated a price tag of $61
million for the Pink Star diamond offered at its Nov. 13 Geneva sale, but the GIA-
graded 59.6 ct Fancy Vivid pink sold for $83.02 million, nearly doubling the 2010
record price of $46 million, also for a pink diamond. The buyer, New York diamond
dealer Isaac Wolf, promptly renamed the stone the Pink Dream.
 The highest per-carat price ever paid: the Orange, a GIA-graded 14.82 ct Fancy Vivid
orange diamond, was sold by Christie’s to an anonymous buyer for $35.54 million, or
$2.4 million per carat.
 The record total for a single jewelry auction: Sotheby’s Nov. 13 auction in Geneva,
which featured the Pink Dream, had a dozen lots sell for more than $1 million each,
and seven that went for more than $6 million each—for a total of $199.5 million.

2. Sotheby’s November sale in Geneva saw the highest price ever paid for a gemstone at
auction: $83.02 million for the Pink Star, a 59.6 ct Fancy Vivid pink diamond. Courtesy
of Sotheby’s.
The record setting began in May at Christie’s Geneva, when Harry Winston paid $26.7
million for a 101.73 ct D-Flawless diamond it named the “Winston Legacy.” Another
highlight from that sale was the 19.88 ct Star of Kashmir sapphire, which sold for $3.48
million, a record $175,202 per carat.

3. This 101.73 ct D-Flawless pear shape, the Winston Legacy, sold for $26.7 million at
Christie’s May 2013 sale in Geneva. Photo by Christie’s Images Ltd. 2013.
Sotheby’s Oct. 7 Hong Kong sale saw the highest price ever paid at auction for a
colorless diamond: a GIA-graded 118.28 ct oval D-Flawless, cut from a 299 ct piece of
rough, sold for $30.6 million to an Asian buyer. Despite the record amount, the final
price was on the lower end of the pre-sale estimate.
The surge really gained momentum a month later, when Christie’s Nov. 12 Geneva
sale broke the record for the highest jewelry sale total—$125.4 million—with the Orange
as its centerpiece. The sale also had a record 22 lots top $1 million, including a Cartier
emerald and diamond necklace that generated $9.9 million; a seven-strand natural pearl
necklace that topped $9 million; and a brooch by designer Anna Hu, featuring a 58.29 ct
Burmese sapphire, that sold for $4.5 million. Hu’s brooch set a record price for a
contemporary designer at auction.
Sotheby’s Geneva auction the next night was, according to David Bennett, Sotheby’s
chairman for jewelry in Europe and the Middle East, “charged with energy … everything
seemed to be selling for more than their estimates. The night could not have
conceivably gone better.”
Four records were broken:

4.  The highest price ever paid—both total price and per carat—for sapphire jewels: $8.45
million ($175,821 per carat, breaking the record set in Geneva in May) for the
Richelieu Sapphires, a pair of Kashmir sapphires, weighing 20.88 and 26.66 ct.
 A record price for a Burmese sapphire: a 114.73 ct gem that sold for $7.14 million, or
$62,214 per carat.
 The most expensive piece of jewelry ever sold at auction by Sotheby’s: a Van Cleef &
Arpels brooch, featuring a GIA-graded 96.62 ct Fancy Vivid Yellow briolette-cut
diamond, that went for $10.55 million.
François Curiel, chairman of Christie’s Asia, explained that the growing wealth in that
region is one reason for the sharp rise in prices for rare stones and jewels.
“In 1994, we sold two lots above $5 million, with a 19.66 ct pink as the top lot for $7.3
million ($375,000 per carat). This was the year we inaugurated our Hong Kong auctions,
which brought 11% of our $190 million annual total,” Curiel said. “In 2013, we sold 14
lots above $5 million, with the 34.65 ct Fancy Intense pink Princie diamond fetching
$39.5 million ($1.1 million per carat). Hong Kong last year contributed 29% of our $675
million annual total. We have just started selling in Shanghai.”
Asian wealth was a major force behind the surging prices for rare gems and jewels in
2013. At Christie’s Hong Kong, the 34.65 ct Fancy Intense pink Princie diamond brought
$1.1 million per carat. Photo by Christie’s Images Ltd. 2013.

5. Will 2014 see more records fall? Economist say the boom isn’t over, and that the ultra-
wealthy are still seeking outlets for their excess cash.
Curiel believes there will be more rare gems on the market, because the rarest items
tend to be offered for the first time—or come up for sale again—when people know they
may get top prices.
“There is an extreme shortage of rare diamonds, jewels, colored stones and pearls; the
same items are fetching many times more than their first time on the auction block,”
Curiel said. “These new prices are bringing more rarities to the market than ever
before—and promise another exciting year for the jewelry industry worldwide.”