"Princie Diamond Dispute, 100ct Diamond & The "Flagler Emerald"

 Time has arrived for some luscious gems and jewels to be auctioned. Every month brings new excitement for new items from varying estates to go up for auction.  On April 21st in New York, Sotheybys is having n auction on April 21st. The main attraction at this auction is a 100.01cts IF type IIIa emerald cut diamond, pre auction estimate is between $19 - $25 Million dollars. The original rough weighed 200 carats and the owner had spent a year studying and mapping the stone. A stone of this size and clarity and color may go higher than the pre auction estimate. Mr. Laurence Graff will you be attending? I could easily see this stone in his extensive collection~

 

100ct diamond in a ring setting, perfect!

 There's also a brooch that is from the estate of Mrs. Bunny Mellon. I had written about her extensive  auction that was held in November 2014 at Sothebys. She had a massive estate, with 5,000 auction lots that sold for a total of $218 Million dollars. $32 Million was the winning bid on a 9.75 fancy blue diamond, $3 Million a carat! Her vast fortune allowed her to purchase stunning gems and jewels. A remarkable example is a Kashmir blue sapphire and diamond brooch will make its debut this month on April 21st in New York. This remarkable brooch contains an impressive Kashmir sapphire, platinum, diamond and 18k gold created by Jean Schlumberger for Tiffany & Co. The pre auction estimate is $750,000 - $1 Million dollars. But like the other lots that sold in her auction I can imagine that this brooch will go for a much higher price given the provenance of the sapphire and the hallmark~

 Graff is well known for their over the top sized stones and designs. Their newest addition is an interchangeable watch called " The Fascination" that features 152 carats of Graffs finest white diamonds.  It is the most expensive 3 jewels in 1 to date and was on display at Baselworld in Switzerland, now its going on tour worldwide~

A dreamy watch with a $40 Million dollar price tag, interchangeable with a pear shaped diamond ring

Drawing and creating "The Fascination" in wax

The versatile watch features a 38.13 pear shaped diamond D Flawless

 And speaking of Art Basel another news making items is on display.  Created by Aaron Shum Jewelers and Coronet Diamonds unveiled a $42 Million dollar Gibson guitar called the "Eden of Coronet" and is in the record books for Worlds Most Valuable Guitar at $2 Million dollars. This incredible guitar features 400 carats of diamonds and 1.6 kilograms of 18k gold.It took Coronets craftsman Peter Wu and 68 artists 700 man hours to complete the guitar. The guitar was on dislay at ArtBasel and is now expecting to go on tour through China and worldwide. It looks like a shiney expensive brooch, but must look incredible on stage~

 Diamonds, large and colorful are what Sothebys is known for. Happening next week in Hong Kong is Sotheby’s Magnificent Jewels and Jadeite sale. Tow stones that bidders are anxiously awaiting are a 23.15cts IIa Golconda diamond called, "the Legend of Golconda" that is n antique cushion cut . Golconda is a mine in India that is known for producing some of the worlds finest diamonds. Pre sale estimate is $4.3 Million - $5 Million.With a beautiful diamond of this size and clarity its very possible the price could be much higher~

23.15cts antique cushion cut diamond, spectacular!

Another remarkable stone is a 77.77cts cushion cut fancy vivid yellow diamond. Incredible rich yellow and large size, this is sure to be a sale favorite. The pre sale estimate is $6.8 Million to $7.5 Million. Like with the other large stones in this sale, the rice on this yellow diamond could be much higher.

77.77cts fancy vivid yellow diamond

Large colored diamonds usually have an interesting past, and at times can be traced back several hundred years. "The Princie Diamond"is an incredible 34.65 fancy intense pink cushion cut diamond is at the center of a lawsuit filed by The heirs of the late Italian senator Renato Angiolillo are suing Christie’s, saying that the stone was stolen when it was sold when  it was auctioned for $39.3 million in 2013. At the time it was the most expensive jewel ever auctioned in the US and most expensive jewel sold by Christies. Its a confusing battle between family members as it is hard to prove who had custody and ownership of the stone. Prior to the auction the family was aware of the sale and had known who had ownership of the stone prior to the sale. The case will continue in New York courts as the family seeks either the return of the stone (highly unlikely) or market value of the diamond plus damages.

34.65cts fancy intense pink diamond

 "The prince Diamond has a royal origin. the stone was mined in the famous Golconda mined in India over 300 years ago. it had belonged to the royal family the (Nizams) of Hyderabad. The incredible pink diamond was given the name by the new owners Van Clef and Arpels in Paris 1960. The stone was named after the Mahrani of Baroda, Sita Devi, aka the Indian Wallis Simpson son. She had an extensive jewelry collection and in a world of women covering their heads, she would be seen at the Waldorf Astoria with her head uncovered wearing her bracelets and showing off her luscious jewels. Her young son, was affectionately called princie.

Maharani Sita Devi of Baroda wearing the Star of the South Diamond necklace, what large sized diamonds!

Her style and collection of jewels were legendary

Her life and jewelry were so incredible that I'll be dedicating an entry to her and her jewelry.

35.02cts Colombian emerald and diamond pendant the "Flagler Emerald"

 And there is a decadent piece of jewelry that has ties to our own local area. Henry Flagler is an American success story having founded Standard Oil in the 1870's and a man that we can contribute to building up of Palm Beach and bringing the rest of America to our warm and sunny shores.  Prior to marrying his last wife he was busy purchasing property up and down the coast of Florida and built beautiful hotels. He eventually built a railroad that traveled from Miami to Key West. At the time that he met his future wife Mary Lily Kenan he was an a older gentleman at the age of 61 and she was a young woman aged 23 from a prominent North Carolina family. At the time of their meeting hew as married to a woman named Alice who was slowly losing her mind. When Henry met Mary he was instantly besotted and they were engaged two days later. Her family wasnt sure of his intentions. But $1 Million in Standard Oil stocks and $1 Million in jewelry seemed to calm their nerves. I would like to think that this 35.02cts Colombian emerald and diamond pendant was one of the items that was givn to a young Mary as a pre wedding gift. It doesnt compare to the 100,000 square foot palatial home he built for her called Whitehall ( a favorite place to visit during the Holidays) here in Palm Beach.  The pre auction estimate for the pendant is $1 Million - $1.5 Million.

The 75 room, 100,000 sq ft home "Whitehall" built for newlywed Mary Lily

Mary Lily Kenan Flagler

                                                    
                                                       Until next time, keep sparkling~