Christie's Jewels: The New York Sale on Wednesday, October 20 totalled $52,492,138 (£33,434,483 or €37,764,128) and was 90% sold by lot, 95% by value.
Amongst the notable lots was a pair of imperial topaz, ruby and diamond ear pendants, by JAR, which had previously been the property of actress Ellen Barkin. Listed at $300,000-$500,000they left the stage for $650,500.
They were surpassed, however, by three Harry Winston works and a remarkable blue diamond.
The three pieces by 'The King of Diamonds' Harry Winston all matched or exceeded expectations: The 1962 Diamond "Holly Wreath" Necklace, sold for $1,202,500 to a US trader, squeaking past its $800,000-1,200,000 estimate.
 Harry Winston diamond necklace |
Two Harry Winston diamond rings: a pear-shaped D colour, VS1 diamond ring of 17.86 carats and a rectangular-cut D color, potentially flawless diamond ring had been estimated at $1.5m-$2m each.
They sold for an impressive $1,818,500 (to a private US bidder) and $2,154,500 (to a private Asian bidder) respectively.
The top lot, however, was The BVLGARI Blue, a two-stone ring featuring a rare Fancy Vivid Blue diamond of 10.95 carats. It is the largest triangular-shaped Fancy Vivid blue diamond ever to appear at auction, and sold for $15,762,500 (£10,039,808 or €11,339,928) - making it the top jewel sold at auction thus far in 2010.
The ring sold at the grand finale of the 450-lot sale, at a staggering $1.4 million per carat - setting a new world record price per carat for a blue diamond at auction.
 BVLGARI Blue diamond |
A delighted Rahul Kadakia, Head of Jewelry for Christie's Americas commented: "A world record price was achieved on October 20 for The BVLGARI Blue, a much-celebrated stone that came up for sale at Christie's for the first time in almost 40 years.
" It had been purchased at the BVLGARI boutique in Rome in 1972 for just $1 million - the equivalent of about $5 million today. With a sold price of $15.7 million, the stone tripled its value in that time, demonstrating the incredible resilience of diamonds in today's volatile economic environment and the true, lasting value of fine jewelry."
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