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Auction house Bonhams has sold the rare British-owned gemstone – the Hope Spinel – for a record price of $30,000 (£19,600) per carat.
The piece, which was sold at the company’s Fine Jewellery sale in London today (September 24), was sold for a total of £962,500, beating the previous record price per carat for a faceted spinel which was set at $16,000 (£10,500) in 2013.
Set in a 19th Century silver and gold brooch, the 50.13-carat octagonal-cut stone was purchased by a private telephone bidder.
The Hope Spinel was part of one of the world’s greatest gem collections until its owner – London banker Henry Philip Hope – died in 1839. It had not been offered for sale since 1917 when it was purchased for £1,060 – the equivalent of £80,000 today.
Bonhams said that it was expecting bids in the region of £150,000 to £200,000 for the piece, but bidding became “fierce” between a number of telephone bidders.
Jean Ghika, director of Bonhams Jewellery for the UK and Europe, said: “We are delighted with the price it has made. It was an exceptional gemstone with a priceless provenance and these pieces just don’t come to the open market often and when they do, they are hotly contested.”
