Associate Editor Natalie Francisco shares 20 of her favorite pieces from the jewelry collections that debuted at Couture.
12-Carat Marquise Blue Diamond Sells for $16M at Christie’s
The July 9 Magnificent Jewels auction in Hong Kong totaled $39.8 million.

Hong Kong—A 12-carat blue diamond proved there’s still demand for colored diamonds when it went for well above its pre-sale high estimate at auction Thursday.
Christie’s Magnificent Jewels auction in Hong Kong marked one of its first live sales for the house since the onset of the pandemic.
The auction was led by a 12.11-carat internally flawless marquise-cut fancy intense blue diamond, which sold for $15.9 million, compared with its pre-sale estimate of between $8 million and $12 million, after 15 minutes of bidding, according to Christie’s.
Following behind the blue diamond at No. 2 in the auction results was a 19.53-carat Burmese star ruby pendant, with ruby and diamond accents, by Edmond Chin for Etcetera (pictured below).
The piece garnered $2.7 million at auction Thursday, falling within its pre-sale estimate range.
At No. 3 was a 17.95-carat cut-cornered rectangular step-cut diamond ring accented with tapered baguette-cut diamonds, which went for $1.6 million.
Tied at No. 4 was another blue diamond ring, this one a 2.08-carat fancy intense blue marquise brilliant-cut, and a necklace featuring two oval-cut sapphires weighing 12.81 carats and 6.50 carats.
Both of those pieces went for above their pre-sale estimate high when they sold for $1.5 million Thursday.
Rounding out some of the top lots were a 14.70-carat Kashmir sapphire and diamond ring that sold for a little more than $1.3 million; a 6.06-carat Burmese ruby and diamond ring and a pair of jadeite, ruby and diamond earrings, which both went for just under $1.3 million each; and a 10.59-carat diamond ring from Harry Winston for approximately $868,000.
The July 9 Magnificent Jewels auction totaled $39.8 million. For full results, visit Christies.com.
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