10ct. Pink Diamond Tops Bonhams Auction

RAPAPORT... A 10.03-carat diamond ring was the top seller at Bonhams'sHong Kong auction, which saw a total of 163 lots sold for a combined $6.7million. The oval-cut, fancy brown-pink stone - flanked by a white diamond oneach side -went for $606,200 at the Rare Jewels and Jadeite sale, Bonhams said Tuesday.That was at the upper end of its pre-sale estimate of $395,000 to $636,000. "This piece was of great significance to present in oursale, as pink diamonds are becoming increasingly rare," said Graeme Thompson,director of jewelry for Bonhams Asia. "Only one in 10,000 carats of mineddiamonds is of gem-quality fancy color, and of this small amount, just 0.01%are fancy pink diamonds." A cushion-shaped, 4.01-carat, pigeon's blood, Burmese rubyring garnered $548,078, against an estimated price of $445,000 to $635,000,while a ring featuring a 12.92-carat Kashmir sapphire surrounded by diamondsfetched $471,602. The piece had a pre-sale estimate of $120,000 to $510,000. Designer and antiquejewelry pieces featuring emeralds sold well, as did jewels from Harry Winston and Bulgari. There was robustdemand in most categories, the auction house said. "The sale saw strength across the board in each sector -white diamonds, colored diamonds, gemstones, designer antique jewelry andjadeite -which shows the buoyancy of the market," Thompson added. Bonhams's upcoming auctions include three London jewelrysales, which will take place on June 13, July 11 and September 12.