SINGAPORE Christie’s inaugural sale of western jewelry and wristwatches in March—the first ever in Singapore by an international auction house—realized $1.4 million with a high percentage of the 128 lots offered finding bids.

            The selection, designed to appeal to the sophisticated tastes of the Southeast Asian community, included fine gemstones with certificates, as well as attractive jewels and watches by leading designers such as Bulgari, Cartier, Chaumet, Mauboussin, Patek Philippe, Piaget, Rolex, Tiffany, Vacheron & Arpels, Webb and Harry Winston.

            Following an extensive traveling exhibition which included for the first time Kuala Lumpur and Jakarta, the auction drew more than 200 prospective buyers and telephone bidders vied with local buyers for prized lots.

            A fancy yellow diamond ring weighing 8.88 carats soared above its presale estimate of $50,000-$70,000 to fetch $84,000. A possible reason? The number eight is a very lucky number for Chinese people, the numeric symbol of prosperity. Another fancy yellow diamond ring of 6.34 carats, with an upper estimate of $55,000, achieved $72,000. The top lot in the sale was an attractive Burma ruby and diamond necklace by Winston which sold for $167,000.

            Unlike most other auctions in Europe and the United States, 96 percent of the sale was bought by private clients, principally from Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Hong Kong and Taiwan. There were also several Western and Middle Eastern buyers.—DAVID WARREN, director of Christie’s Swire jewelry division in Asia

            ST MORITZ—Sales at Christie’s February auction achieved $8.08 million and only 64 percent of the lots offered found bids while Middle East buyers stayed home.

            However, Christie’s was not alone in the low turnout at one of the year’s premier shows. Sotheby’s same-month, same-resort sale also experienced less-than-expected sale due to an absence of Middle East buyers.

            “We are slightly disappointed but not surprised by the results of our sale as the attendance was lower than last year with fewer Middle East buyers,” said Christie’s Jewelry Director Francois Curial.

            One Middle East buyer who attended the sale picked up the most expensive lot—an un-mounted circular-cut diamond of 11.03 carats for $394,400. A certificate from the Diamond High Council stated the diamond was D color, loupe clean.

            Other diamond sales included a ring with a single, marquise-cut diamond weighing 8.04 carats, which sold for $231,600, an uncounted rectangular-cut diamond of 7.17 carats, which achieved $156,800, and a single-stone diamond ring of 10.39 carats, G color, which sold for $156,800.

            A New York trader picked up a single-stone, fancy intense yellow diamond ring of 8.64 carats for $244,800 and a two-stone diamond ring for $156,800. The two-stone ring was set with a square-cut fancy yellow diamond weighing 8.03 carats and a square-cut diamond of 8.05 carats, with heart-shaped diamond and yellow diamond shoulders.

            A diamond bracelet set with thirty graduated oval-cut fancy yellow and fancy light yellow diamonds with circular-cut diamond borders sold to a private Italian buyer for $178,800.

            An Art Deco emerald and diamond fringe necklace, circa 1925, sold for $258,000. The total estimated weight of the diamonds was 91 carats.

            Another Middle East trader bought a single-stone sapphire ring for $178,800. The cushion-shaped sapphire weighing 24.04 carats was certified of Kashmir origin by the Gubelin Gemological Laboratory.

            A rare piece which found no bids was an uncounted heart-shaped fancy dark grayish yellow-green diamond of 3.93 carats. The stone displays what is referred to in the trade as “chameleon” characteristics? When it is place in the dark, it becomes yellowish. When exposed to light, it gradually reverts to its original green hue. The Gemological Institute of America stated it to be natural color, VVS2. The stone had a pre-sale estimate of $160,000-$190,000.

Sotheby’s

            NEW YORK—Two of the world’s leading auction buyers, Laurence Graff of London and Ahmed Fitaihi of Saudi Arabia, controlled the bidding of colored diamond lots at Sotheby’s Extraordinary Jewels sale in April.

            The day’s sales totaled $30.215 million with nearly 80 percent of the 562 lots offered finding bids.

            “There was active participation throughout the sale from an international group of dealers and private collectors, the main strength coming from the Middle East and Europe with some American participation,” said John Block, executive vice president of Sotheby’s.

            Of the top 10 lots, Laurence Graff picked up five including the day’s most expensive piece—an emerald-cut fancy blue diamond of 7.78 carats which went for $2.48 million, or more than $318,000 per carat. Graff took home a second blue diamond of 3.53 carats set in a ring by Harry Winston for $992,500.

            He also picked up a 5.65 fancy pink diamond for $1.98 million, a diamond ring of 24.01 carats for $1.27 million and a fancy vivid yellow diamond of 9.05 carats for $772,500.

            Cherished by royalty and connoisseur alike, pink diamonds have been found in the treasures of Indian maharajahs, Persian Shahs and the crowned heads of Europe. At this sale, Siba Rare Jewels bought a pink diamond of 4.92 carats for $2.09 million, or $425,300 per carat, setting a record price per carat for a pink diamond at auction.

            A pear-shaped fancy pink diamond of 21.30 carats, the largest pear-shaped pink diamond ever to be offered at auction, failed to draw bids.

            Fitaihi picked up three top 10 lots including a fancy intense yellow diamond ring of 43.08 carats for $1.1 million, a fancy intense yellow diamond ring of 17.89 carats for $629,500 and a sapphire and diamond ring for $552,500.

            A European collector bought a fancy intense yellowish green diamond of 2.15 carats for $1.1 million.