A 50.52 carat diamond necklace has provided the top lot at a leading jewellery auction in New York.
 The 50.52 carat diamond necklace sold for $188,000 per carat |
The pear-shaped D colour flawless diamond necklace sold for $9.5m, or $188,000 per carat, at Christie's Magnificent Jewels auction on October 16, a testament to its considerable eye appeal.
It sold to an anonymous private buyer.
In second place was a pair of pear-shaped fancy yellow and colourless diamond ear pendants, of 52.78 and 50.31 carats, respectively.
They sold within estimate for $4.7m.
A natural two-strand pearl necklace beat its $3.5m high estimate by 4.76%, selling for $3.7m, while a 68.35 carat oval-cut fancy intense yellow flawless diamond achieved $3.2m.
Rahul Kadakia, Christie's head of jewellery for the Americas and Switzerland, said: "Private collectors and dealers reacted more than positively to a 369 lot auction that was finely-tuned in terms of prices and selection of gems to current market conditions.
"Natural pearls, colourless flawless diamonds, and coloured diamonds of high quality once again dominated the day, making for a vibrant atmosphere in the saleroom."
The auction achieved $50m in all, with 87% of lots sold - indicative of the current appetite for fine jewellery.
A 2012 Barclays survey of collectibles owners found that 70% own jewellery, up from 57% in 2007 - making it the most popular form of treasure asset. Fine art was in second place with 49%.
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