The Mellon Blue Diamond Fetches $25.6 Million at Geneva Auction
The renowned Mellon Blue, a 9.51-carat fancy vivid blue diamond once owned by U.S. art collector and philanthropist Bunny Mellon, sold for $25.6 million at a Christie’s auction in Geneva on Tuesday. The gem, set in a serpentine ring, was part of the auction house’s Magnificent Jewels sale at the Hotel des Bergues, fetching 20.5 million Swiss francs, within its estimated range of 16 to 24 million francs.
Christie’s jewellery head Max Fawcett described the diamond as “an outstanding stone” symbolic of a “bygone era of Gilded Age fortune.” Auctioneer Rahul Kadakia, who conducted the sale, noted the result reflected the “elite appetite amongst collectors for extraordinary and storied gems.” The brilliant-cut, internally flawless diamond was last publicly seen in 2014 when it sold for over $32 million following Mellon’s death at the age of 103.
According to Tobias Kormind, managing director of 77 Diamonds, the final price fell slightly below expectations amid global economic uncertainty and reduced participation from Chinese buyers. Meanwhile, Sotheby’s is set to continue Geneva’s jewellery season on Wednesday with its Royal and Noble Jewels sale, featuring a brooch seized from Napoleon Bonaparte and a 10.08-carat vivid pink diamond named The Glowing Rose, estimated to fetch around $20 million.
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