It’s been a big week of auctions at Geneva as Christie’s and Sotheby’s set new record for sales of gems, watches and artwork.

What made the most  news were the large diamonds (photos above):

• Christie’s “The Orange” (sold at $36M)  a 14.82-carat pear-shaped diamond, the largest fancy vivid orange diamond in the world with VS1 clarity
• Sotheby’s “The Pink Star” (sold at $83M)  a 59.60-carat oval-cut colored diamond, the largest internally flawless fancy vivid pink diamond ever graded by Gemological Institute of America (GIA)

According to www.bloomberg.com:

Isaac Wolf, a New York-based diamond cutter, was the buyer of the 59.60-carat pink diamond that sold for $83 million in Geneva last night, a record for any gemstone at auction.

Wolf renamed the oval-cut stone the “Pink Dream,” New York-based Sotheby’s said. He competed against three others for the gem in bidding that lasted about five minutes before the strike of the gavel, followed by cheers and applause.

Aside from the record-breaking gems, the other items that fetched high values at the Geneva auctions are as follows:

Christie’s Auction

• 1957 Patek Philippe pink-gold watch (sold for $2.2M)  which is one of the only six of its kind that exists. It adjusts for leap years and is crafted in 18 karat rose gold.
• 1947 Patek Philippe yellow gold split seconds chronograph (sold for $1.6M) which is only one of three known to exist. It is made of 18 karat gold and one model is known to be once owned by Duke Ellington.
• 1969 Rolex Daytona Paul Newman Model($1.1M)

Photo credits: www.christies.com

Sotheby’s Auction

• Walska Briolette Diamond Brooch (sold for $10,555,778), created by Van Cleef & Arpels in 1971 from the collection of Ganna Walska has a fancy vivid yellow diamond weighing 96.62 carats
• Richelieu Kashmir Sapphire Earrings (sold for $8,365,882) which used to belong to Lady of Odile de Richelieu, Countess Gabriel de La Rochefoucauld has a total weight of 47 karats and is mounted with diamonds

Photo credits: www.sothebys.com