Sotheby’s September jewellery and watch auctions in Paris totalled €9.3 million (AUD$16.4 million), marking Sotheby’s best jewellery results in the City of Lights since 2018 and the fourth consecutive white glove sale for its Fine Watches auction. Both sales were part of Sotheby’s Paris Luxury Sales which included auctions for luxury handbags and wine and spirits.
Sotheby’s Paris Fine Jewelry auction on September 30 consisted of 269 jewels that achieved more than €7.4 million ($13.07 million) with nearly half of all lots selling above their high estimates, Sotheby’s said in a statement. Signed antique and period jewels from Parisian jewellery houses dominated the sale with 33 pieces by Cartier, 14 pieces by Van Cleef & Arpels, 10 pieces by Boucheron and six pieces by independent contemporary Parisian high jewellery artist Lydia Courteille. The sale also contained several signed pieces from important jewelry houses outside France that included Graff, Bulgari and de Grisogono.
Important colored gemstones also performed well, Sotheby’s said. In fact, the top lot of the sale was a platinum and diamond ring centered with a 10.68-carat cushion-shaped Kashmir sapphire that fetched €698,500 ($1.2m), more than double its high estimate (top photo).
A Cartier platinum and diamond ring centered with an 18.25-carat cushion-shaped unheated Burmese sapphire was the number 2 lot of the auction fetching €558,800 ($985,000).
An 18k gold and platinum Cartier Panthère bangle set with buff-top sapphire spots and brilliant cut diamonds, with eyes set with pear shaped emeralds and a polish onyx nose fetched €279,400 ($493,000).
A Cartier emerald, onyx and diamond ‘Panthère’ demi-parure consisting of a pendent necklace and earrings with the famed panther resting on an onyx hoop sold for €203,200 ($358,000), well above its high estimate.
Perhaps one of the biggest surprises of the auction was a “Toi et Moi” ring with a step-cut Kashmir emerald and a Colombian sapphire collet-set and flanked by triangular diamonds. The jewel is partially signed Faraone. It sold for €203,200 ($358,000), nearly triple its high estimate.
“These results confirm the strong and growing position of our Jewellery Department on the international stage,” said Magali Teisseire head of Jewellery and Watches, Sotheby’s France. After attracting enthusiastic collectors from around the world, this auction marks our finest jewelry sale to date, setting a new Paris sales record just a few months after the previous one.”
Meanwhile, The Sotheby’s Paris Fine Watches sale on September 18 consisted of 106 lots of vintage and contemporary timepieces that totaled €1.9 million, with 100% of lots sold for the fourth consecutive time. Many of the names you normally see at watch auctions were among the top lots including Patek Philippe, Rolex and Audemars Piguet.
The top lot in the sale was an historic piece by Breguet, a “Souscription” tact pocket watch, circa 1801, featuring a revolutionary calendar, which achieved €139,700 ($245,000) more than double its high estimate.
Another standout lot was a Cartier London Baignoire watch, which sold for €95,250 ($167,000) nearly five times its high estimate, setting a new world record for Cartier Baignoire watches. The yellow gold watch and bracelet was gifted to Joseph Losey by his close friend Elizabeth Taylor and accompanied by an unsigned cigar box gifted by another friend the famous French actor Alain Delon, circa 1967.
“We are delighted with this latest white-glove sale, which continues a successful streak: since October 2023, all of our watch auctions in Paris have closed with 100% of lots sold — a flawless record that reflects the strength of the market season after season,” Camille Jucker, head of Sale, Watch Specialist, Sotheby’s France.
This article was originally published on forbes.com and all figures are in USD.
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