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Oct 18, 2024

Van Cleef Diamond Necklace Smashes Estimate at Sotheby’s

A diamond tie necklace by Van Cleef & Arpels tripled its high estimate at the most recent Sotheby’s New York jewelry sale, raking in $3.6 million. The piece — which consists of graduated links with

A diamond tie necklace by Van Cleef & Arpels tripled its high estimate at the most recent Sotheby’s New York jewelry sale, raking in $3.6 million.

The piece — which consists of graduated links with variously cut diamonds and a tassel that partially rotates — was the top-selling item at the June 7 Magnificent Jewels sale, according to Sotheby’s. The necklace had a presale estimate of up to $1.2 million.

Also far surpassing its high estimate was an Egyptian-style bracelet designed in France circa 1925, featuring diamonds, rubies, sapphires, emeralds and black onyx. The central panel depicts the figure of Isis, with images of Horus falcons and papyrus reeds on the flanking panels. The jewel fetched $1 million against a $350,000 upper price tag.

In total, the sale garnered $30 million. However, a number of top items failed to find buyers, including a diamond and sapphire necklace by David Morris, which had an estimate of $3 million to $5 million. The Lavender Dream diamond — an oval-shaped, 3.36-carat, fancy-intense-pinkish-purple specimen on a ring between epaulette-shaped diamonds — went unsold as well despite an expected high price of $1.5 million.

Here are the rest of the top five items at the sale:

Main image: The Van Cleef & Arpels tie necklace. (Sotheby’s)

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