NEW YORK, NY.- Propelled by top prices for important diamonds, exceptional colored stones and historic designs, Sotheby’s final jewelry auction of 2015 concluded last night in New York with a $52.3 million total, raising the Company’s annual worldwide sales of jewelry to $571 million. Below is a look at the jewels that drove Sotheby’s results both last night and throughout 2015:

IMPORTANT DIAMONDS & COLORED STONES
• An Exceptional Platinum, Kashmir Sapphire and Diamond Ring. Set with a sugarloaf cabochon sapphire of 25.87 carats, and with no indications of heating. Sold for $5,122,000 ($197,990 per carat) (estimate $3.5/4.5 million) AUCTION RECORD PRICE-PER-CARAT FOR A SUGARLOAF CABOCHON KASHMIR SAPPHIRE.

This Kashmir sapphire hails from three generations of one of America’s most prominent families: that of Thomas Fortune Ryan (1851-1928), who stands alongside J.P. Morgan, Andrew Carnegie and John D. Rockefeller in the annals of American financial history.

• A Magnificent Platinum and Diamond Ring. Set with a square emerald-cut diamond weighing 38.27 carats, D color, VVS2 clarity and type IIA. Sold for $4,058,000 ($106,036 per carat) (estimate $3.5/4.5 million)

HISTORIC JEWELS BY ICONIC MAKERS
• A Magnificent and Historic Platinum and Diamond Necklace, Van Cleef & Arpels, 1939. Set with 217 carats of diamonds in a sunburst motif. Sold for $4,282,000 (estimate $3.6/4.6 million)

Queen Nazli (1894-1978), mother of Egypt’s King Farouk, commissioned this diamond necklace and a matching tiara for the wedding ceremony of her daughter, Princess Fawzia, to the Crown Prince of Iran, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, in 1939. A large part of Nazli’s jewelry collection, including her Van Cleef & Arpels diamond necklace and tiara, was sold by Sotheby Parke Bernet in New York in November 1975. The present necklace has since remained in a private collection for 40 years, and was sold tonight for the benefit of a charitable foundation.

• A Pair of White Gold, Chalcedony, Sapphire and Diamond ‘Couronne’ Cuff-Bracelets, Suzanne Belperron. Sold for $526,000 (estimate $400/600,000)

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• A Platinum, White Gold, Chalcedony, Sapphire and Diamond ‘Flower-Head’ Necklace, Suzanne Belperron. Sold for $430,000 (estimate $350/550,000)

Made by Belperron in Paris circa 1935 for the Duchess of Windsor, both pieces have been lauded as iconic examples of the Duke and Duchess’ visionary connoisseurship of 20th century jewelry design. Their appearance at auction coincides with the relaunch of the Belperron salon in New York this fall.

VINTAGE BULGARI FROM THE BERGREEN ESTATE
• A Platinum, Fancy Colored Diamond and Diamond Brooch, Bulgari, 1964. Sold for $1,750,000 million (estimate $500/700,000)

The sale offered an extensive collection of jewels from the estate of philanthropist and arts patron Adele G. Bergreen, featuring a strong selection of Bulgari’s most celebrated designs of the 1960s and ‘70s that included gold link chains, coin jewels, ‘Serpenti’ designs and colorful evening-wear. All 43 jewels on offer from the estate were sold, totaling $3.3 million – more than double their $1.5 million high estimate.

NOTABLE AUCTION RECORDS OF 2015 AT SOTHEBY’S
• World Record Total for Any Jewelry Auction – Sotheby’s Geneva, May 2015. US$161 Million / CHF 149.8 Million / HK$1.26 Billion

• The Blue Moon of Josephine. Sold for US$48.5 Million / CHF 48.6 Million / HK$378.1 Million (US$4,028,941 per Carat). World Record for Any Diamond or Gemstone / World Record Price-per-Carat for Any Diamond or Gemstone / World Record for Any Jewel / First Diamond or Gemstone to Sell at Auction for More than US$4 Million per Carat

• The Sunrise Ruby. Sold for US$30.3 Million / CHF 28.3 Million / HK$236.6 Million (US$1,185,451 per Carat). World Record for a Ruby / World Record for a Jewel by Cartier

• The Ultimate 100 Carat Emerald-Cut Diamond. Sold for US$22.1 Million / CHF 21.2 Million / HK$172.3 Million (US$220,459 per Carat). Record for Any Diamond Sold in New York

• The Jewel of Kashmir. Sold for US$6.7 Million / CHF 6.5 Million / HK$52.3 Million (US$242,145 per Carat). World Record Price-per-Carat for a Sapphire

•The Cowdray Pearls. Sold for US$5.3 Million / CHF 5.1 Million / HK$41.1 Million. World Record for a Natural Grey Pearl Necklace

• World Record for a Fancy Orangy Pink Diamond

• World Record for a Pair of Burmese Sapphire Earrings

• World Record for a Kashmir Sapphire Jewel

• World Record for a Two-Row Natural Pearl Necklace