Yellow sapphire pendant sells for $122,000 at Sotheby's Jewels sale in Melbourne

By Richard Brewster, on 15-May-2015

The rare Willows 35.73-carat yellow sapphire pendant – the largest ever offered at an Australian auction – sold for a staggering $122,000 in Melbourne on May 12 through Sotheby’s Australia.

Chairman Geoffrey Smith said the yellow sapphire was exceptional and achieved $3414 a carat. 

The rare Willows 35.73-carat yellow sapphire pendant – the largest ever offered at an Australian auction – sold for a staggering $122,000 in Melbourne on May 12 through Sotheby’s Australia. Chairman Geoffrey Smith said the yellow sapphire was exceptional and achieved $3414 a carat.

The rare Willows 35.73-carat yellow sapphire pendant – the largest ever offered at an Australian auction – sold for a staggering $122,000 in Melbourne on May 12 through Sotheby’s Australia. Chairman Geoffrey Smith said the yellow sapphire was exceptional and achieved $3414 a carat.

Chairman Geoffrey Smith said the yellow sapphire was exceptional and achieved $3414 a carat.

“The stone captivated people from Australia and around the world,” he said.

With a significant number of international registrations, the auction attracted strong telephone bidding.

A fancy yellow 13.81-carat round brilliant cut diamond claw-set in an 18-carat gold ring was typical of the international telephone interest and changed hands for $231,800 on a $100,000-$150,000 catalogue estimate.

Other significant diamond results included a platinum 4.94-carat diamond ring which sold for $58,560 and a 6.555-carat emerald-cut diamond for $57,340 – more than double the lower estimate. 

About The Author

Richard Brewster has been writing about the antiques and art auction industry for almost 20 years, first in a regular weekly column for Fairfax's The Age newspaper and also in more recent times for his own website Australian Auction Review. With 45 years experience as a journalist and public relations consultant, in 1990 Richard established his own business Brewster & Associates in Melbourne, handling a wide range of clients in the building, financial, antiques and art auction industries.