Jewellery World Magazine - December 2021

News
Argyle’s final blue diamonds snapped up by
a single buyer
Rio Tinto’s entire 2021 Once in a Blue Moon Tender
collection of 41 lots of carefully curated Argyle blue and
violet diamonds has been won by a single bidder, the
Hong Kong fancy coloured diamond specialist, Kunming
Diamonds. Kunming Diamonds’ history-making global bid
for the 24.88 carats of final “beyond rare” blue jewels
from the East Kimberley region of Western Australia is a
significant moment in the coloured diamond industry.
Tragic jewels auctioned
Two iconic auction houses had the opportunity to sell historic royal jewellery with
a tragic backstory early in November. Christie’s in Geneva sold a pair of diamond
bracelets that once belonged to doomed French queen Marie Antoinette, and
Sotheby’s sold a sapphire and diamond brooch with matching ear clips that had
been smuggled out of Russia by the aunt of Tsar Nicholas II during the Russian
Revolution.
The Argyle mine sporadically produced small blue and
violet diamonds in a beautiful array of shades and with
the closure of Argyle it is extremely unlikely that there will
ever be another collective offering of iconic gems in this
colour spectrum from a single mine.
Almost the entire world’s supply of rare pink, red, blue
and violet diamonds come from Rio Tinto’s Argyle
Diamond Mine which ceased production on 3 November,
2020.
Marie Antoinette’s bracelets each featured 112 diamonds, set in silver and gold.
Before the queen was executed in 1793, she arranged for her jewellery, including
the bracelets, to be sent to Brussels, Belgium, where they were kept safe for her
only surviving child, Madame Royal Marie Therese Charlotte. Having stayed in the
possession of one family for over 200 years, the bracelets sold for US$11.1 million,
significantly over the estimated selling price of $9.3 million.
The Russian brooch sold by Sotheby’s featured a 26.80 carat oval sapphire from
Sri Lanka and the ear clips had step-cut sapphires weighing 6.69 and 9.36 carats
respectively. These jewels belonged to Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna the Elder,
whose husband Grand Duke Vladimir of Russia was the uncle of Tsar Nicholas II.
Maria Pavlovna had a passion for fine jewellery
and during the Russian Revolution, she asked a
British art dealer to smuggle 244 items of her
jewellery to London.
Besides the brooch and earrings, the collection
also included the Vladimir Tiara, which
now belongs to Queen Elizabeth II whose
grandfather George V was a cousin of Nicholas
II. Pavlovna managed to flee Russia in 1919,
the last of the Romanovs to escape, and she
died in Paris a year later.
Sleek and unique engagement ring
Kristen Stewart has announced her engagement after a
long-awaited proposal from girlfriend Dylan Meyer.
Stewart’s apparent
engagement ring is a sleek
brushed platinum band
in an angular design with
no stones. Jenny Luker,
president of platinum
Guild International USA
estimates that the ring cost
a modest US$2,500 and
will maintain its value over time.
Stewart hasn’t stated the ring is an engagement ring,
but she’s been spotted wearing it on the right finger
since the announcement.
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jewellery world - December 2021