WHAT: When economies get iffy, many collectors with cash turn to precious stones. And when your net worth is stratospheric, only the very rarest and finest will do. Knowing that, the very rich then sometimes decide to let their best gems go. The outcome in one case was the jaw-dropping result of $57.5 million for the Oppenheimer Blue diamond at Christie’s Geneva.
The sale marked a record as the most expensive jewel ever sold at auction. The fancy grade vivid blue rectangular-cut stone of 14.62 carats was named for Sir Philip Oppenheimer, member of a family that owns the De Beers mines, and mounted by the prestige jeweler Verdura.
MORE: One month later, at Christie’s New York, a 24.18 carat mixed-cut fancy intense blue diamond, known as the “Cullinan Dream” after a seminal figure in South Africa diamond mining, sold at $25.4 million. The largest of four blue diamonds cut from a 122.52 carat rough, the “Cullinan” is said to be unique for its blue/white color.
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SMART COLLECTORS KNOW: History has taught us that diamonds and gold hold value (until lab-grown diamonds are perfected).
HOT TIP: Such stones are related to engagement-ring-grade diamonds only by chemistry. Smart readers need to be as hard-nosed and educated as the big boys when buying.
BOTTOM LINE: The previous high point for a fancy blue diamond at sale was $48.5 million for the “Blue Moon” at Sotheby’s Geneva in 2015. Hong Kong tycoon Joseph Lau bought the 12.03 carat stone.
MORE: Perhaps the honeymoon is over. Last month, when a Canadian diamond firm put the tennis ball sized “Lesedi La Rona,” an uncut 1,109-carat stone up for auction, Sotheby’s hoped for a $70 million result. But the Brexit vote brought volatility and investor willies, and the stone failed to meet reserve.
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