Editor’s Note
This article details the remarkable sale of a pink diamond ring, once thought to be owned by Marie Antoinette, which fetched $14 million at Christie’s—double its pre-sale estimate.
A JAR ring featuring a pink diamond believed to have belonged to Marie Antoinette was the star of the most recent jewelry sale at Christie’s in New York, doubling its estimate to bring in $14 million.
The piece features the Marie-Thérèse Pink Diamond, a kite-shaped, 10.38-carat, fancy-purple-pink stone, which is believed to date back to the mid-18th century. It was allegedly included in a parcel Marie Antoinette entrusted to her most faithful hairdresser, along with other jewels from her collection, on the eve of her failed escape from Paris in 1791. The jewels made their way to her only surviving child, Duchess Marie Thérèse de Angoulême, before they were passed down through future family members. The ring, which carried a high estimate of $7 million, set a world auction record for a JAR jewel, as well as a world record price for a fancy-purple-pink diamond, Christie’s said Wednesday.
The June 17 “Magnificent Jewels” sale also showcased several private groupings, including those of philanthropists Anne Hendricks Bass and Lucille Coleman, as well as three Mughal jewels from a royal collection.
In total, the auction scored $87.7 million, the highest-ever total for a various-owner jewelry auction at Christie’s in the Americas. All lots on offer at the sale found buyers. The white-glove result was the second for Christie’s this year, following its 100%-sold-out Geneva Magnificent Jewels auction, which brought in $72.4 million.
Here are the rest of the top 10 lots sold at the auction:
1. **The Blue Belle Necklace:** Bears a cushion modified mixed-cut, 392.52-carat Ceylon sapphire discovered in 1926. It sold for $11.3 million.
2. **Mughal Emerald Necklace (c. 1750):** Features five carved Colombian emeralds. It more than doubled its $3 million high estimate to fetch $6.2 million.
3. **Second Mughal Necklace:** Features a hexagonal Colombian emerald center stone suspending a drop-shaped Colombian emerald. It soared past its $3 million upper estimate to bring in $5.6 million.
4. **Unmounted Round Brilliant-Cut Diamond:** A 66.74-carat, D-color, VVS1-clarity diamond sold within its price range for $3.8 million.
5. **Mughal Three-Strand Necklace:** Comprising spinel beads and natural pearls. It scored $3 million, demolishing its expected $2 million top price.
6. **Harry Winston Necklace:** Bears multiple diamonds including a 17.50-carat pear brilliant-cut. It went for $2.4 million, smashing its $1.8 million estimate.
7. **Necklace with D-Flawless Diamond Pendant:** Featuring a 25.45-carat pear brilliant-cut diamond. It inched past its $2 million high price to achieve $2.3 million.
8. **Van Cleef & Arpels Pendant Earrings:** Include two pear brilliant-cut diamonds. The piece, which carried a high estimate of $1.8 million, made $2 million.
