Christie's Auction Fetches $1.3m as Online Interest Doubles

(IDEX Online) - Christie's sold over $1.3m of jewelry at its latest online auction, with no sign of bidding being dampened by coronavirus.

The auction house said the number of unique visitors online had nearly doubled, compared with a similar sale a year ago, and almost 40 per cent of sales were to new customers. Four fifths lots sold above their high estimates.

The 12-day sale attracted bidders from 31 countries for over 150 lots, many by Bulgari, Cartier, David Webb, Graff, Tiffany & Co., Van Cleef & Arpels and Verdura.

Among the highlights of the auction were an emerald and diamond icon necklace by Graff that sold for $52,500; (low estimate of $10,000) emerald and diamond icon earrings, that sold for $43,750; (both pictured) and a ruby and diamond ring, that sold for $35,000.

Caroline Ervin, ecommerce jewels specialist at Christie's Americas, said "We were delighted with the amount of online engagement for this sale, which received an unprecedented number of unique visitors, over a 99% increase from April 2019, and from around the world.

"We worked collaboratively to enhance our digital educational offerings to include refreshed online collecting guides, videos, and interviews with specialists to better virtually connect with our audiences."