An emerald was sold at auction on Tuesday, November 12. At the same time, it became the most expensive jewel in the world.
A 37-carat square emerald mounted on a brooch by Cartier for the Aga Khan was sold for nearly 9 million euros at auction on Tuesday, November 12. The auction took place at Christie's in Geneva (Switzerland), the jewel, which became the most expensive in the world, was bought for precisely 8,859,865 dollars, reported HuffPost.
The emerald brooch is set with 20 marquise-cut diamonds. The jewel was ordered by the Aga Khan from Cartier in 1960 and then given to his wife Nina Dyer. The previous record belonged to a jewel from the Bulgari house, sold in 2011 for $6,578,500.
A rare emerald
“Emeralds are all the rage right now and this one ticks all the boxes”explained Max Fawcett, head of the jewelry department at Christie's in Geneva. According to him, an emerald of this quality does not appear, for a sale, “only every five or six years”. “Emerald is extremely thin and flat, making it look like a 50 carat stone. Flat stones, however, tend to lose their color in the center, but this one is a completely uniform green”he added.
The brooch that was sold in Geneva was already part of the first edition of Christie's “Magnificent Jewels” sale on May 1, 1969, as part of Nina Dyer's collection. The jewel was then purchased by the French jeweler Van Cleef & Arpels before landing, a few years later, in the hands of the “king of diamonds”, the American Harry Winston.
published on November 13 at 4:52 p.m., Lilian Moy, 6Medias
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