AUCTION JEWELLERY
Curiel recalls that as his
internship was drawing to a
close and he was preparing to
return to Paris someone from the
department left their role and
instead of spending time trying
to find a replacement the role was
offered to Curiel: “I called my
parents and asked if I could stay
and have never left.” He adds:
“Next year it will be 50 years
since I made that phone call and
people always ask why I have
worked at one place for so long
and I say I was simply lucky to
find something I love.”
Curiel has worked at Christie’s
in London, Spain, opened its Paris
office and in November 2009 was
asked to go to Hong Kong to help
develop an office in Asia. Until
very recently he was the head of
Christie’s in Asia before taking on
his current role.
fetch between $14m and $19m.
Of the diamond, Curiel says:
“The Perfect Pink is a 14ct pink
diamond - not just pink but real
pink - as sometimes it is pink for
the seller and brown for the buyer,
but there is no controversy for
this, as it is was pink as they come
and was extremely clean with only
a tiny tiny imperfection.
“It was a wbeautiful rectangular
cut diamond on the four corners
and at the time it was the most
beautiful pink we had ever seen.
It brought nearly US$23m which
was a very strong price. The size
and the colour was what made it
so special - pink diamonds exist
in 2,3,4 or 5 carats but if you ask
me to find a 15-carat diamond of
this quality I don’t think I can find
you one especially considering the
colour is so strong.”
RARE JEWELLERY
During his time at Christie’s Curiel
has been involved in the sale of
many high-value and famous
pieces of Jewellery and details The
Perfect Pink, The Peregrina Pearl
and The Winston Legacy as some
of the most renowned sold under
his tenure.
‘‘
During his time
at Christie’s
Curiel has been
involved in the
sale of many
high-value and
famous pieces
of Jewellery
and details The
Perfect Pink, The
Peregrina Pearl
and The Winston
Legacy as some
of the most
renowned sold
under his tenure.
‘‘
FEATURE
had to be drilled and cleaned to
secure it firmly to its setting. After
drilling and cleaning, the pearl’s
weight decreased to 203.84 grains.
La Peregrina remains one of the
largest perfectly symmetrical pear-
shaped pearls in the world.
“The Peregrina Pearl came
from Elizabeth Taylor and is a
sensational piece of jewellery
because it is the same Peregrina
Pearl from the late 16th Century
and is one of the most magical
pearls in the world”, he reflects.
“It had fabulous provenance
and a interesting story. I spent a
lot of time with Elizabeth when
we appraised the piece and I
was amazed by how much she
knew about the geographical
provenance of the colour stones
and the quality of diamond and
lack of inclusion, the jeweller and
so on.
“Normally with these the owners,
they have a love of jewellery but
not an intimate understanding of
what it is, which was not the case
of Elizabeth. We ended having a
conversation as if we were two
professionals. It was not only a
rare piece of jewellery because of
its provenance but also because of
who it also belonged to.”
Credit: CHRISTIE'S IMAGES LTD
La Peregrina Pearl
Sold: 13 December 2011,
New York - Price: $11,842,500
Credit: CHRISTIE'S IMAGES LTD
The Perfect Pink
Sold: 29 November 2010,
Hong Kong - Price: $23,165,968
The most expensive jewel
ever sold in Asia at the time, the
Perfect Pink, was a 14.23-carat
diamond, sold for over $23m
to an anonymous buyer after
an intense bidding war. The
pink diamond was expected to
22 JEWELLERY FOCUS
La Peregrina is one of the most
famous pearls in the world. Its
history spans almost 500 years,
and it has passed from the African
slave who found it at Pearl
Islands in the Gulf of Panama,
to European kings and queens.
More recently, the pearl belonged
to Elizabeth Taylor. The original
weight of this pear-shaped pearl
at 223.8 grains. At the time of its
discovery, it was the largest pearl
ever found. In 1913 the pearl
Credit: CHRISTIE'S IMAGES LTD
The Winston Legacy
Sold: 15 May 2013, Geneva
Price $26,737,914
Billed by the auction house as
the “perfect diamond,” the price
paid set a world auction record
for a colorless diamond. The 101
November 2018 | jewelleryfocus.co.uk