The Most Expensive Diamond Jewelry Auctions of 2024

If the diamond jewelry auctions of 2024 taught us anything, it was that exceptional fancy-color and white diamonds, and a captivating provenance remain in demand even in uncertain global conditions.

When Christie’s sold the breathtaking 10.20-carat fancy intense pink diamond ring, known as the Eden Rose, for $13.3 million in June, it confirmed what industry insiders already knew: Top quality fancy-colored diamonds are a rock-solid investment!

While industry insiders continuously speculate on the price of diamonds, the auctions are the only transparent retail platform that demonstrates the value of stones and jewelry in real time.

A round up of the most expensive diamond jewelry auctions of 2024 from five auction houses revealed a relatively good year with particularly strong sales in the final quarter, and fancy colored diamonds commanded the highest prices.

Christie’s and Sotheby’s

Both Christie’s and Sotheby’s ended the year on a high with their Magnificent Jewels sales in December. Christie’s Magnificent Jewels achieved $49.2 million in sales, with a most expensive lot being a 5.72-carat fancy intense blue diamond selling for $8.8 million. While Sotheby’s pulled in $30 million with 92 percent of the lots sold.

“Colored diamonds have performed extremely well this year,” said Rahula Kadakia, Christie’s International Head of Jewelry. In addition to the Eden Rose sale in June and the blue diamond sale in December, the auction house sold several more multimillion dollar fancy-colored diamonds, including a pair of vivid orange-yellow diamond earrings, weighing 12.2 and 11.96 carats, for $8 million in October.

Phillips Auction House

At Phillips auction house, the nine highest priced diamond jewelry sales in 2024 were fancy colored diamonds. The standouts: A 6.21-carat fancy vivid pink ring, classified as Type IIa, for $12 million and the rare 1.56 red Argyle Phoenix for $4.2 million, both sold at the Geneva auction in May. It was non-other than Mr. Laurence Graff, who has a track record of paying top dollar for the rarest diamonds at auction, who purchased the Argyle Phoenix for a record breaking price per carat for a red diamond.

Fancy Vivid Yellow Diamond and Diamond Ring. (Courtesy of Phillips Auction House)

Diamond Ring. (Courtesy of Phillips Auction House)

Fancy Intense Blue Diamond Ring. (Courtesy of Phillips Auction House)

Fancy Intense Orangy Pink Diamond and Diamond Ring. (Courtesy of Phillips Auction House)

‘The Argyle Phoenix’ A rare Fancy Red Diamond Ring. (Courtesy of Phillips Auction House)

Exceptional Fancy Vivid Pink Diamond Ring. (Courtesy of Phillips Auction House)

‘Red Miracle’ Rare Fancy Red Diamond Ring. (Courtesy of Phillips Auction House)

Fancy Vivid Yellow Diamond and Diamond Ring. (Courtesy of Phillips Auction House)

Intense Green Diamond, Diamond and Pink Sapphire Ring. (Courtesy of Phillips Auction House)

Bonhams Auction House

At Bonhams, colored diamonds were also a highlight, said Jean Ghika, Global Head of Jewelry. Overall, she says, “There remains increasingly strong demand for colored diamonds and older antique cuts that are viewed as having more unique qualities.”

The standouts at Bonham’s were a Mouwad toi et moi ring with a 5-carat fancy intense blue diamond and 5.13-carat purple pink diamond, which sold for $3.750 million; a 1830s light pink diamond ring surrounded by diamonds in a heart-shape, which realized $484,532 (way above the low estimate of $63,000); and a 30.10-carat type IIa very light pink diamond for $2.6 million.

An Impressive Fancy Deep Brownish Pinkish Orange Diamond Ring. (Courtesy of Bonhams Auction House)

Diamond Ring. (Courtesy of Bonhams Auction House)

Harry Winston Superb Diamond Bracelet, circa 1963. (Courtesy of Bonhams Auction House)

A Diamond Pendant. (Courtesy of Bonhams Auction House)

Harry Winston Magnificent Diamond Ring, circa 1967. (Courtesy of Bonhams Auction House)

Everyone Loved a Good Backstory During The Diamond Jewelry Auctions of 2024

Jewelry with a pedigree or fascinating provenance has always elevated the interest and price, and that proved true again at the diamond jewelry auctions of 2024. One of the most talked about sales of the year was Sotheby’s offering of an 18th century necklace with about 300 carats of diamonds from the collection of the British aristocrat the Marquesses of Anglesey and linked to Marie Antoinette’s famous necklace scandal. Can it get any better? The stunning necklace realized $4.8 million, far exceeding the low estimate of $1.8 million.

Christie’s sold an extraordinary Cartier diamond necklace, circa 1935, owned by the famous Sassoon family, for nearly $5 million. It’s considered one of the most important surviving Cartier diamond jewels of   the early 20^th century and a great example of the house’s Art Deco style, which fused the East and West in a graceful design with some 140 carats of diamond. It went for five times the low estimate.

Stylish designs also performed well, pieces that represent the best of an era or a house, such as Van Cleef & Arpels’ Maharaja diamond necklace and earrings, which sold for $6.2 million in November. The lavish design with a 25-carat pear-shape center stone can be transformed into seven necklace styles, three bracelets, one brooch, and four pairs of earrings. It reflects India’s influence on the French house and it’s remarkable savoir faire.

A White Natural Diamond Unlike the Rest

Buyers paid top dollar for antique diamonds and unique cuts, reported auction executives.

“Clients are looking at diamonds with a sophisticated eye, they aren’t just looking at certificates,” said Quig Bruning, Head of Sotheby’s Jewels, Americas & EMEA. “There is a particular interest in older diamonds and stones with older characteristics, diamonds with charm and character.”

In December, Sotheby’s sold a Graff diamond necklace with an 18-carat pear-shaped diamond drop from the collection of Sydell Miller for $1.8 million, two-and-a-half times the low estimate. “One of the reasons was the specialness of stone, the older emerald cut had charm, a certain je ne sais quoi,” said Bruning.

Sotheby’s top white diamond sales included a 53.4-carat pear shaped diamond, which achieved $3.5 million in June, and a 37.61 carat round-cornered square brilliant-cut diamond, which realized $4.3 million in May.

Bruning noted in the December sale, the top selling diamond lots went largely to private collectors, which is a good indication of the market’s appetite. He pointed out that when clients hear that diamond prices are little soft, people see this as an opportune time to buy.

At Doyle’s December sale, a 15.76-carat cut-cornered emerald cut diamond Bulgari ring sold for $1.175 million, well above the estimate of $300,000 – $500,000. Once again, the stone had the unique shape and character that people want and a Bulgari signature helps too.

On the weaker side were white diamond below 5 carats, said Ghika at Bonhams, adding, “However, there is still demand in the market if the pricing is correct and if the stones have superior cut, good proportions and are free from fluorescence or graining.”

The Outlook For Diamond Jewelry Auctions in 2025

“We see the market as being extremely buoyant for colored diamonds and for antique, old cut diamonds,” sums up Ghika.

At Sotheby’s, the outlook is positive too. “The December sales indicate to me that interest, demand and desire for high quality, extraordinary white diamonds are picking up and picking up relatively quickly,” said Bruning. “Given what we’ve seen past six weeks, we have a lot of reason for optimism.”