HONG KONG.- A magnificent selection of rare coloured diamonds, Art Deco jewellery, and impressive signed pieces by houses such as Bulgari, Harry Winston and Van Cleef & Arpels, are set to go under the hammer at Bonhams Rare Jewels and Jadeite Sale in Hong Kong on 1 June 2016.

Blue Diamonds
Leading the sale is a 3.04ct Fancy Intense Oval-Shaped Blue Diamond, with a clarity grade of VS2, estimated at HK$17,000,000-20,000,000. Blue diamonds are rare, accounting for less than one per cent of all diamonds mined. Infrequently offered at auction, they have mesmerized royalty and celebrities over the centuries, one example being the famous blue 'Hope Diamond' bought by King Louis XIV of France in the late 17th Century. This blue diamond was discovered in its rough form in early 2014 at the Rooipoort Mine in Northern Cape Province, South Africa, where discoveries of this kind are so rare that they make for only 0.1% of the mines production.

Pink Diamonds
Also featured in the sale is a rare 3.05ct Fancy Pink Diamond, estimated at HK$8,000,000- 10,000,000. Diamonds get their colour from chemical impurities that absorb light – yellow diamonds contain traces of nitrogen, and blue diamonds contain boron – yet it is it not certain how the mysterious pink diamond gets its colouring. It is hailed as one of the rarest hues to be found in diamonds, with approximately 1 in 10,000 carats of mined diamonds true gem quality fancy coloured diamonds. Of this small amount, just 0.01% are fancy pink diamonds, and only a handful of these are over 2 carats.

Graeme Thompson, Jewellery Director, Bonhams Asia, comments: “This year’s Rare Jewels and Jadeite sale features more than 120 carefully curated lots, led by a refined selection of rare coloured diamonds. Infrequently offered at auction, this rainbow of colour includes the rarest of blue, pink and green diamonds, each incredibly stylish and luxurious, and available to the highest bidder.”

Signed Jewellery
The sale also features a number of signed pieces, including an impressive Art Deco diamond necklace by Bulgari. Art Deco jewellery from the 1930s is incredibly rare. The necklace offered, circa 1935, is set with over 88 carats of diamonds, and estimated at HK$ 2,500,000-3,500,000.

Further signed pieces include an important 11.52 carat, step-cut, Colombian 'no oil' emerald and diamond ring, by Harry Winston from 1976, now estimated at HK$6,000,000-8,000,000, as well as an important Kashmir sapphire and diamond necklace by Van Cleef & Arpels, circa 1960, set in the centre with a 7.02 carat, cushion-shaped, unheated Kashmir sapphire, estimated at HK$5,000,000-6,000,000.

Fine Jadeite
Several spectacular pieces of fine Jadeite are also offered in the sale. The auspicious gemstone, which is loved and admired throughout Asia,is always popular. Highlights include a spectacular diamond and jadeite 'Leaf' Pendant, estimated at HK$ 500,000-700,000, as well as a cabochon jadeite and diamond ring, estimated at HK$750,000-950,000, and a fine jadeite bangle, estimated at HK$2,000,000-2,800,000.

Elsewhere, the sale offers a diverse selection of charming pieces, including a 1.24 carat fancy intense green diamondand diamond ring, estimated at HK$950,000-1,300,000; an important 7.12 carat, D colour, internally flawless, step-cut, diamond single-stone ring, estimated at HK$3,250,000-5,000,000; and a rare 37.44 carat unheated alexandrite and diamond ring, estimated at HK$1,500,000-1,800,000.