The 40 Most Expensive Jewels Ever Sold at Auction

Sotheby’s Hong Kong, April 2017

The Pink Star shattered every price record when it sold at Sotheby’s for an astonishing $71.2 million. At 59.60 carats, the fancy vivid pink internally flawless diamond is the world’s most expensive diamond or jewel sold at auction—by a long shot. This beautiful pink jewel (about the size of a strawberry) is prized for its size, clarity, and intensity of color. Like a great work of art, experts say there will never be another one like it.

Christie’s Geneva; May 18, 2016

The world’s largest fancy vivid blue diamond to hit the auction block, the 14.62-carat diamond might sound relatively small compared to 60-carat Pink Star, but vivid blue diamonds are even more rare than pink so to find one of this size and quality is miraculous. It was named for Sir Philip Oppenheimer, the former chairman of the De Beers diamond company who owned the stone.

Sotheby’s Geneva, May 2017

As the most expensive earrings sold at auction, this set of fancy-colored pear-shaped diamonds are an unlikely pair. Similar in size and shape, one is a 14.54-carat fancy vivid blue diamond and other is a 16-carat fancy intense pink. It’s a collector’s dream to get two exceptional colored diamonds in one sale.

Christie’s Geneva; November 13, 2018

When the Harry Winston company paid over $50 million for this diamond—far exceeding the $30 million estimate—it set a record price per carat for a pink diamond at auction. Originally found in South Africa and cut in 1920, the stone belonged to the Oppenheimer family who controlled De Beers. It’s now famously named for its new owner.

Sotheby’s Geneva, November 2015

Hong Kong billionaire Joseph Lau paid a jaw-dropping sum for a 12.03-carat internally flawless fancy vivid blue diamond as a gift for his seven-year-old daughter Josephine. This came a day after he purchased a 16.8-carat pink diamond for $28.5 million at rival auction house Christie’s, which he named Sweet Josephine. That’s fatherly love.

Sotheby’s Geneva, November 2010

Billionaire Laurence Graff dropped a record-breaking $46.1 million for a 24.78-carat fancy intense pink diamond. It once belonged to his rival Harry Winston, but now it’s part of Graff’s historic collection of rare diamonds and bears his name.

Christie’s New York; April 16, 2013

Its noble lineage dates to the Nizams of Hyderabad, but more recently it’s been the subject of a nasty family feud. The magnificent 34.65-carat fancy intense pink diamond belonged to Italian politician and businessman Renato Angiolillo. After his death, his children battled over his estate and claimed that stepsiblings stole the stone.

Sotheby’s Geneva, November 2018

After a fierce bidding war, the victor paid a record price for this large natural pearl and diamond pendant. Not just any pearl, it belonged to the ill-fated French Queen Marie Antoinette and was part of a jewelry collection sold by Italy’s royal Bourbon-Parma house. The new owner paid a premium for the bragging rights of the Queen’s jewels.

Christie’s Geneva; November 12, 2013

As the largest known fancy vivid orange diamond, this 14.82-carat pear-shaped stone is a natural phenomenon. As Christie’s stated in their catalog, a stone of this color and size is “the ultimate possession for diamond collectors.”

Sotheby’s New York, November 2014

When Bunny Mellon sold her exceptional 9.75-carat fancy vivid blue pear-shaped diamond to Hong Kong property tycoon Joseph Lau for a record-breaking price, he promptly renamed it Zoe after his daughter. Mellon used the proceeds of the sale to fund her passion: It went to the Gerard B. Lambert Foundation, which supports the Oak Spring Garden Library and horticultural and educational endeavors.

Christie’s Hong Kong; November 28, 2017

Described by Christie’s as “the Picasso of the pink diamond world,” this 14.93-carat fancy vivid pink stone took in more than $30 million. Aside from its exceptional rose color, the shape is distinctive. “When you look at the shape of the stone, it’s so elegant,” says Rahul Kadakia, the house’s international head of jewelry. “It’s a cross between an oval and a marquise — what we call a moval.”

Sotheby’s Hong Kong, April 2016

A vivid blue diamond alone is rare, but when it’s over 10 carats and oval-shaped, it is even more exceptional. That’s why this 10.10-carat vivid blue diamond ring flanked by two pear-shaped diamonds fetched more than $30 million.

Sotheby’s Geneva, May 2016

When this 15.38-carat fancy vivid pink pear-shaped diamond sold in 2016, it set a world record for any vivid pink diamond at auction. The GIA wrote: “The Unique Pink is a most distinctive item in the fascinating world of gemstones. It is exceptionally rare for any natural diamond to reveal fancy vivid pink color, but for one of 15.38 carats to exhibit such tone and saturation is astonishing.”

Sotheby’s Hong Kong, October 2013

At 118.28 carats, this D flawless oval-shaped diamond is a type lla, a rare category of diamonds that are the most chemically pure and often described as appearing like pools of crystal-clear water. At the time of its sale, the GIA reported it was the largest diamond of this size, shape, and quality it had ever graded.

Sotheby’s Geneva, November 2014

In the world of colored gemstones, a Burmese pigeon blood ruby is the most rare and valuable. They stand apart for their deeply saturated color and natural fluorescence, which gives the stone a lively inner fire. Industry experts say that this 25.59-carat cushion-cut Burmese ruby set between two shield-cut diamonds in a Cartier signed ring is the most beautiful of its kind.

Christie’s Geneva; November 10, 2015

In two days, Hong Kong billionaire Joseph Lau spent nearly $80 million on two diamonds for his seven-year-old daughter Josephine. He paid a record price for this 16.8-carat fancy vivid pink cushion-cut diamond ring, type lla. The next day, he paid over $48 million for a vivid blue diamond at Sotheby’s. Now Josephine’s name is forever tied to two record-breaking diamonds.

Sotheby’s Hong Kong, April 2014

As a symbol of supreme status and wealth in Asia, top-quality jadeite is the most coveted jewel even surpassing diamonds. That’s why a collector dropped a record-breaking $27.6 million for this important necklace comprised of 27 perfectly matched graduated jadeite beads of translucent bright green color. Owned by socialite Barbara Hutton and Princess Nina Mdivani, it also has an impressive provenance.

Christie’s Geneva; May 15, 2013

To solidify its place as the source of the world’s premiere diamonds, the Harry Winston company dropped nearly $30 million on what was billed as the world’s largest flawless diamond at the time. The 101.73-carat D flawless pear-shaped stone came from a 234-carat rough diamond discovered in a De Beers mine in Jwaneng, Botswana. It took nearly two years to cut and polish before it came to auction as what Christie’s called the “perfect diamond.”

Sotheby’s Geneva, November 2020

As the most expensive purple-pink diamond sold at auction at the time, the Spirit of the Rose is named for its beautiful rosy hue. Discovered in 2017 in Russia’s remote Republic of Sakha (Yakutia), the original 28-carat rough pink crystal was transformed into a perfectly proportioned 14.83-carat fancy vivid purple-pink oval diamond.