101ct. Diamond Rakes In $13M at Sotheby's

RAPAPORT... A private collector in Asia paid $13 million for a pear-shaped stone he renamed the Claire G diamond, after his wife, at the most recent Sotheby's sale in New York.The 101.41-carat, D-color, internally flawless stone, previously known as the Juno diamond, was estimated to fetch in excess of $10 million at the June 16 Magnificent Jewels sale. The result is one of the highest prices achieved at auction for a D-color, flawless or internally flawless diamond over 100 carats, Sotheby's said last week. In total, the sale garnered $52 million."We are thrilled to see this exceptional diamond achieve such a strong result - confirmation that there's ongoing demand from collectors at the highest levels of the market," said Quig Bruning, head of jewels for Sotheby's Americas. "This diamond captivated clients around the world through our extensive travels this spring."Other notable items included two old mine-cut colored diamonds from the estate of noted architect and author George Thomas, Jr. The first, a 4.08-carat, fancy-intense pink, fetched $3.8 million, well above its $1.8 million high estimate, while a 3.46-carat, fancy-grey-violet diamond brought in $2 million, nearly three times its upper valuation.Meanwhile, an emerald-cut, 26.06-carat, D-color, VVS1-clarity diamond ring by Kwiat also performed well. The piece sold for $2.3 million, within its estimate. A necklace featuring a rare 10.31-carat Paraiba tourmaline and diamond pendant smashed its $700,000 high estimate, achieving $1.2 million.However, the Earth Star, a pear-shaped, 111.59-carat, fancy-deep-orange-brown diamond mounted in a setting by designer David Webb, did not fare as well as expected. The gem, which is the second-largest diamond of its color, cut and size to be offered at auction, realized only $693,000, well under its $1.5 million low estimate.Image: The Claire G diamond. (Sotheby's)