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The Largest Jewelry Sales at Sothebys Throughout 2014

There should be no question about whether or not Sotheby's had incredible jewelry sales in 2014. In fact, there were several large sales throughout the year, including pieces from amazing collections from all over the world. Many records were set for auction sales for specific stones and for specific collections as well. Not only can you find the most amazing jewels from around the world, but you can also see the most incredible pieces from historic time periods. I believe that Sotheby's has some of the most unbelievable jewelry pieces on the auction block.

Photo via Fancy Diamonds (Flickr): This yellow diamond is similar in size and shape to the Graff Vivid Yellow diamond sold at the May 13 Geneva Sotheby's jewelry auction. Photo via Fancy Diamonds (Flickr): This yellow diamond is similar in size and shape to the Graff Vivid Yellow diamond sold at the May 13 Geneva Sotheby's jewelry auction.

May 13, 2014, Geneva

The Magnificent Jewels and Noble Jewels sale in Geneva on May 13 was the largest Sotheby's jewelry sale of 2014. The total amount brought in by the sale was $123,153,383.00. One of the most extraordinary pieces was the Vivid Yellow diamond by Graff, which sold for $16,347,847.00 and set the world record for yellow diamonds and for jewels by Graff. It is a 100.09-carat diamond ring that is daffodil in color. The Victory Diamond, a 70.33-carat cushion-cut diamond, was another important sale on that day. Both of these period diamonds have noble provenance and are from private collections. Other important pieces to note were Jacqueline Auriol's Van Cleef & Arpels diamond necklace, a 121-carat Burmese sapphire, a 12.46-carat Burmese ruby, Flora Sassoon's private jewelry collection, and other fascinating pieces from the Mme. Picha-Eisenstien collection.

April 7, 2014, Hong Kong

The Hong Kong auction on April 7 was called the Magnificent Jewels and Jadeite sale, and it brought in $107,228,104. The biggest sale of the day was the Hutton-Mdivani necklace from the Cartier Collection. It contains 27 translucent bright emerald-colored jadeite beads, graduated in size, with a ruby and baguette diamond clasp made of platinum and 18-karat yellow gold. This record-setting piece was bid on for almost a half-hour and brought in double what was expected of it. It set an official world auction record for both a Cartier jewel and for a jadeite jewel and brought in more than $27 million. A world record was also set for the sale of a ruby, which was the 29.62 carat Burmese Mogok ruby and diamond ring by Cartier and brought in more than $7 million. Other pieces sold included a Golconda diamond and a 102-carat sapphire.

November 12, 2014, Geneva

Geneva was once again the host of one of the largest jewelry sales of 2014, and more than 90% of its lots sold. On November 12, the Magnificent Jewels and Noble Jewels sale came in as the third-largest sale at $90,071,665. A world auction record for a ruby was reached with the Graff Ruby, bringing in over $8 million. It is one of the finest rubies of Mogok in Burma and is one of the rarest gemstones as well. A Kashmir sapphire was also sold for $5.7 million, and the Mavrommatis Collection sold for more than $26 million. Another amazing piece sold at the auction was Queen Josephine's natural pearl necklace.

As expected, there are many more jewelry auctions set for 2015. This means that there are more jewelry treasures to come from collections belonging to famous people in history, affluent families, and some amazing respected and talented jewelers as well. If you are ever in the market for an outstanding (and expensive) piece of jewelry or beautiful gemstone, I believe Sotheby's is surely the best place to shop.