Harry Winston, the once and forever king of diamonds

A Harry Winston ring featuring an Asscher-cut 31.04-carat diamond earned $600,000 plus the buyer’s premium in December 2020. Image courtesy of New Orleans Auction Galleries and LiveAuctioneers.
A Harry Winston ring featuring an Asscher-cut 31.04-carat diamond earned $600,000 plus the buyer’s premium in December 2020. Image courtesy of New Orleans Auction Galleries and LiveAuctioneers.
A Harry Winston ring featuring an Asscher-cut 31.04-carat diamond earned $600,000 plus the buyer’s premium in December 2020. Image courtesy of New Orleans Auction Galleries and LiveAuctioneers.

NEW YORK — Born in 1896 in New York City, Harry Winston was destined to one day be crowned the “king of diamonds.” His father ran a small jewelry shop and the young Winston soon showed himself to be a quick study. When he was just 12 years old, he spied an emerald being sold as a piece of green glass on a tray of costume jewelry in a pawnshop. To avoid alerting the shop owner, he bought it along with another stone for the grand sum of 50 cents and resold it for $800 a few days later.

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