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LiveAuctioneers bidders bolster Rago $4.25M jewelry auction

Tom Hoepf
Tom Hoepf
Unenhanced classic Columbian emerald and diamond ring, approximately 29 carats. Price realized: $1,030,000. Rago Arts and Auction Center image
Columbian emerald and diamond ring, approximately 29 carats. Price realized: $1,030,000. Rago Arts and Auction Center image

 

LAMBERTVILLE, N.J. – An unenhanced Colombian emerald weighing approximately 29 carats brought $1,030,000 in Rago’s $4.25 million dollar jewelry auction on Dec. 4. Absentee and Internet live bidding was available through LiveAuctioneers, and bidders utilizing the Internet bidding platform significantly impacted the auction results.

Nearly 500 bidders from 28 countries registered to bid through LiveAuctioneers. The number of absentee bids placed through LiveAuctioneers was 393.

A pear-shape diamond of approximately equal size, suspended as a pendant (below), followed closely at a sale price of $850,000.

 

Important diamond necklace, 28.67 carats. Price realized: $850,000. Rago Arts and Auction Center image.
Important diamond necklace, 28.67 carats. Price realized: $850,000. Rago Arts and Auction Center image.

 

In all, it was an auction in which the flashiest prices were achieved by serious gemstones and pieces by renowned makers like Cartier and David Webb.

“Property from many fine homes, collectors and estates provided us with beautiful material across a wide spectrum,” said Sarah Churgin, director of the Rago jewelry department. “From Imperial jade to museum quality Ottoman-era Armenian jewelry, from top designers such as Cartier to diamonds and gemstones significant in their own right, this was a benchmark sale for us.”

Katherine Van Dell, the jewelry specialist who will head the department as of 2017, when Sarah Churgin transitions to a Rago consultant, agreed. “This auction, to me, marked new territory in terms of what we have offered and what we are capable of achieving for our consignors.”

A fine agate and gold table box (below) by Cartier, Paris, circa 1927, and about the size of a box of facial tissue, sold for $75,000.

 

Fine agate and gold table box by Cartier, Paris, Agate and gold table box by Cartier, Paris, circa 1927, 8 1/4 x 5 1/4 x 2 3/4 inches. Price realized: $75,000. Rago Arts and Auction Center image
Fine agate and gold table box by Cartier, Paris, Agate and gold table box by Cartier, Paris, circa 1927, 8 1/4 x 5 1/4 x 2 3/4 inches. Price realized: $75,000. Rago Arts and Auction Center image

 

A Belle Epoch ruby and diamond cluster ring by Tiffany & Co. sold for $62,500. The unenhanced ruby was of Thai origin and weighed approximately 2.90 carats.

 

Tiffany & Co. ruby and diamond ring. Price realized: $62,500. Rago Arts and Auction Center image
Tiffany & Co. ruby and diamond ring. Price realized: $62,500. Rago Arts and Auction Center image

 

A pair of fine “A”-grade jadeite pendant earrings carved as grasshoppers sold for $37,500. The pair was set on 18K gold with diamond accents.

 

 

Jadeite ‘A’-grade pendant earrings. Price realized: $37,500. Rago Arts and Auction Center image.
Jadeite ‘A’-grade pendant earrings. Price realized: $37,500. Rago Arts and Auction Center image.

 

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