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AuctionsDec 06, 2018
Barbara Sinatra’s Diamond Ring Sells for $1.7M at Auction
Ol’ Blue Eyes proposed to her with the 20.60-carat carat emerald-cut stone in a glass of champagne.
Frank Sinatra proposed to his wife Barbara with this 20.60-carat emerald-cut diamond ring. It garnered $1.7 million at auction Tuesday.
New York—The 20-carat diamond ring with which Ol’ Blue Eyes, Frank Sinatra, proposed to his wife by presenting it in a glass of champagne went for $1.7 million at a jewelry auction Tuesday.
The 20.60-carat emerald-cut stone, flanked by two triangular-shaped diamonds, was part of a collection of Barbara Sinatra’s jewelry headlining Sotheby’s Magnificent Jewels sale in New York.
The auction house said the ring sold after an “intense competition” between two telephone bidders.
Her jewelry collection was 100 percent sold Tuesday, garnering a total of $4.7 million.
Other notable jewels included a mystery-set ruby and diamond butterfly brooch from Van Cleef & Arpels that realized $567,000, going for well above its high estimate of $175,000.
Additional items from her collection will be offered in two more dedicated auctions: “Lady Blue Eyes: Property of Barbara and Frank Sinatra” today (Dec. 6) in New York and an online-only sale, open for bidding through tomorrow (Dec. 7).
Meanwhile, Tuesday’s Magnificent Jewels auction totaled $46.4 million, pushing Sotheby’s jewelry sales for 2018 past the $400-million mark.
It featured a number of other important pieces, including an F color, internally flawless 51.52-carat cushion-cut diamond set in a Harry Winston ring, the auction’s top lot at $4 million. 
At No. 2 was a 25.03-carat D color, flawless emerald-cut diamond that sold for $3.5 million. 
A number of colored gemstones appeared in the top 10 lots sold by value, including a gold ring centered on an 8.11-carat oval-shaped Burmese ruby that went for $2.8 million, a 16.46-carat Kashmir sapphire and diamond ring that garnered $1.8 million, and a 12.03-carat Colombian emerald and diamond ring that sold for $1.5 million, all three of which are seen below.
Interestingly, what didn’t sell Tuesday was a ring set with a 10.62-carat pear-shaped fancy vivid blue diamond accented by round diamonds. The second-largest vivid blue diamond to go up on the block in New York, according to Sotheby’s, was called “highly important” by the auction house and estimated to sell for between $20 million and $30 million but failed to find a buyer.
To see the full list results of Tuesday’s jewelry auction, visit Sothebys.com.
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