Hemmerle 19-Piece Collection Fetches $1.4m
April 27, 21
(IDEX Online) - An unrivalled collection of 19 pieces by the German jewelers Hemmerle fetched $1.4m, almost double the pre-sale estimate, at Sotheby's New York.
The single most expensive lot was a pair of copper and diamond ear studs (see pic), featuring two old European-cut diamonds of 8.81carats and 8.80 carats. They sold for $201,600, surpassing their $100,000 to $150,000 estimate.
The pieces - comprising the largest single-owner collection of Hemmerle - belonged to the late philanthropist, art patron and passionate collector Michelle Smith, daughter of the American builder-developer and philanthropist Robert H Smith.
Hemmerle, founded in 1893 in Munich by brothers Joseph and Anton Hemmerle, has a reputation for setting gems in unorthodox materials, such as wood, iron or aluminum and for its imaginative combinations of colors, textures, and stones.
The auction, A Vision: Property from the Collection of Michelle Smith, had been expected to fetch $823,000.