Press Release | Christie’s Geneva 2020 Summer Luxury Auctions total CHF54 millions

Press Release | Christie’s Geneva 2020 Summer Luxury Auctions total CHF54 millions - MondaniWeb

Press Release | Christie’s Geneva 2020 Summer Luxury Auctions total CHF54 millions

CHRISTIE’S SUMMER 2020 GENEVA LUXURY AUCTIONS

TOTAL CHF54,625,751 / $57,903,296/ £45,885,630

With a combined sell-through rate of 81%

 

Geneva – Christie’s July Luxury sales in Geneva realised a combined total of CHF54,625,751 / $57,903,296 / £45,885,630 for 195 pieces of jewellery, 226 watches, and 819 fine wines, with a combined sell through rate of 81%.  Registered bidders from 42 countries, across 6 continents, participated in the July Luxury sales. The top lot of the sale week was a fancy vivid blue and colourless diamond ring by REZA, selling for CHF8.7 million in today’s Magnificent Jewels sale.

“Our 102nd week of sales in Geneva took place under extraordinary circumstances with social distancing, not just at the pre-sale exhibition but also at all three live auctions. Nevertheless, collectors showed great resilience and confidence as they bid and bought all week long, starting with the Cartier clocks to fine wrist watches, rare wines to superb gems. The star of the week was a twin stone blue and white diamond ring by Parisian jeweler, Reza, which achieved $ 9.2m after spirited bidding between several telephones. A 100ct perfect D color diamond was purchased by Moussaieff jewelers who continue to acquire the rare and unusual gems of the world.”  commented Francois Curiel, Chairman of Christie’s Europe.

Aline Sylla-Walbaum, International Business Manager of the Luxury Cluster commented: “Christie’s has been the Jewels market leader for 26 years. Our commitment to excellence combined with our strong personal relationships has built our reputation, which in turn has created trust; the most important factor for clients when buying at auction, might it be live or online. The Geneva sale season, which operated under strict sanitary guidelines, including reduced attendance in the auction room, saw strong participation of buyers from 42 countries over the phone and online. With a combined sale result of CHF 54.6 million and a sell-through rate of 81%, we are now looking forward to London and New York to conclude the July Luxury Sales month, which started in Hong Kong.”

 

MAGNIFICENT JEWELS | 22 JULY 2020

Auction Total: CHF40,099,688 / $42,505,669 / £34,084,735

Sale Percentages: 88% by value | 80% by lot

The Magnificent Jewels auction totalled CHF40,099,688 / $42,505,669 /£33,683,738 and achieved sell through rates of 88% by value and 80% by lot. Coloured and colourless diamonds remained the attraction with the international clients, joining us from 4 continents, mainly by phone and online. The room – restricted to 100 visitors- was very active and several lots sold to the room. Top lot of the sale was an exceptional diamond ring by REZA made of a fancy vivid blue IF diamond of 5.34carats and a D-colour, IF diamond of 5.37 carats, selling for CHF8,730,750 / $9,254,595 / £7,333,830. And once again, Moussaieff excels by applying its distinctive selective eye by acquiring the rare and unusual, 100.85 carat D colour, IF diamond for CHF5.6 million. Also, part of the sale were a pair of magical cabochon aquamarine and single-cut diamond earrings signed Margaret Jewels, a Geneva based private jeweller, sold to benefit the Swiss foundation Children’s Action. The earrings sum will be donated in its entirety to benefit the foundation’s mission to help children and young people across the world.

 

RARE WATCHES | 20 JULY 2020

Auction Total: CHF9,231,625 / $9,785,522 / £7,754,565

Sale Percentages: 85% by value | 80% by lot

The Rare Watches sale in Geneva, Christie’s first live auction in Switzerland since lockdown, performed strongly with a sale total of CHF9,231,625 / $9,785,522 / £7,754,565. The auction offered 207 watches spanning the early 19th century to the present day, with the majority of timepieces consigned by private collectors. Registered bidders from 41 countries, across 6 continents, joined us with well-balanced participation from Americas, Asia, and the EMEA region. 57% of the auction was sold via telephone bidders; 23% on Christie’s Live online sale platform and 20% in the room, which was at limited capacity due to governmental COVID-19 restrictions in place in Switzerland. Throughout the auction we saw healthy demand from private collectors, contributing to 79% of the total value sold in the sale.

The top lot of the auction was Lot 110, a Patek Phillippe Gold 3974R, which achieved CHF687,000 / $728,220. The pink gold version is extremely rare, with a maximum of 15 examples ever made, so far only 4 have returned to the open market, including this one, which was consigned by a private collector. At the request of the last owner, it had been enhanced with a stunning white dial with Roman numerals. This watch is very likely to be the only example of a ref. 3974 to be offered in such a combination. Reference 3974 was manufactured in very small numbers, the majority in yellow gold, and was produced in 1989 to celebrate Patek Philippe’s 150th anniversary.

Lot 188, a 18K gold ‘Paul Newman’ reference 6239 attracted competitive bidding, and sold for sold for CHF663,000 / $702,780. To the best of our knowledge, this timepiece has never been offered at international auction before, and only a handful of the 300 examples cased in gold, carried a champagne Paul Newman dial. Launched in 1963, the Rolex Cosmograph reference 6239 (production run circa 14,000 watches in total) was named following the fervor surrounding space travel. Later bearing the inscription Daytona, due to Rolex’s involvement with the celebrated International Speedway, the popularity of the chronograph soared throughout the years, leading it to become an icon and source of great fascination.

 

FINEST & RAREST WINES | 21 JULY 2020

Auction total: CHF2,693,738 / $2,855,362 / £2,262,740

Sale percentages: 92% by value | 87% by lot

Christie’s Finest & Rarest Wine auction on 21 July 2020 totalled CHF 2,693,984, with sell-through rates of 92% by value and 87% by lot. Collectors around the globe, across all time zones, participated in the July auction, with significant activity from Asian buyers, contributing to 41% of the total value sold. Other significant contributions came from collectors from Switzerland (25%) and the UK (18%). Private buyers and trade were equally represented in the sale.

The leading lot of the auction’s was Lot 812, two cases (12 bottles) of Petrus 1982, which achieved CHF51,450 and was very much sought-after. Furthermore, a collection of Madeira wines sold particularly well, a signature specialty of Christie’s for over a decade.

 

LUXURY AUCTION CALENDAR JULY 2020

The Hong Kong and Geneva Luxury Weeks have performed strongly, and we are looking forward to the live auctions in London and New York.

28 July Fine Wines London

29 July Magnificent Jewels New York

30 July Important Jewels London

31 July Handbags London

 

PRESS CONTACTS:

Alexandra Kindermann | +41 (0)44 268 10 19 | akindermann@christies.com

Lauren Bush | +44 (0)207 389 2391 | laurenbush@christies.com

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