Ring Sells for $1.2 Million at Sotheby’s

Brooke Astor’s 22.84 ct. emerald engagement ring (photo courtesy of Sotheby's)

Jewelry from the estate of Brooke Astor, philanthropist and legendary New York society figure, fetched $5.7 million at Sotheby’s New York.

The sale, which concluded on Sept. 25, was led by Astor's 22.84 ct. platinum, emerald, and diamond engagement ring; it sold for $1.2 million. The entire auction brought in $18.8 million, nearly doubling its estimate of $9.7 million. All 64 lots of jewelry were sold.

Other highlights of the jewelry collection included a Bulgari 18k gold, platinum, emerald, and diamond necklace, which sold for $686,500, and a Van Cleef & Arpels platinum and diamond ring, which sold for $614,500.

The proceeds of the auction will benefit Astor’s favorite charity organizations, including the New York Public Library, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Pierpont Morgan Library, and the Animal Medical Center of New York.

Bulgari 18k gold, platinum, emerald, and diamond necklace

Van Cleef & Arpels platinum and diamond ring

Top 7 Places to Go Gem Hunting On Your Next Family Vacation

Got a rock hound in the family? Consider taking a vacation to one of these geologically rich destinations and you might just find enough gemstones or precious metals to pay for the trip, because you can keep everything you find. You're guaranteed to have a good time looking—even if you come up empty.

Crater of Diamonds State Park

What: Gem quality diamonds
Where: Murfreesboro, Arkansas
Web: www.craterofdiamondsstatepark

Bring your own tools or rent them at the only diamond-producing site in the world that is open to the public. Most visitors don't get rich digging in this ancient volcanic ground, but with 40 other rocks and minerals in the area you're sure to find something interesting. Admission is $7 for adults, $4 for children.

Gem Mountain

What: Sapphires
Where: Philipsburg, Montana
Web: www.gemmountainmt.com

Gem Mountain is in the middle of nowhere, but well worth the trouble it takes to get there. Staff dig up the dirt, screen out the big rocks, and provide all the tools and equipment you'll need to wash through the gravel for rough sapphires. They'll even help you determine which stones are worth heat treating (which improves the color and clarity) and faceting. Gravel is priced by the bucket, and prices vary. Be prepared to get wet and dirty.

Herkimer Diamond Mines

What: Double-terminated quartz crystals
Where: Herkimer, New York
Web: www.herkimerdiamond.com

Nicknamed "Herkimer Diamonds" because of their striking geometrical shape, these 500 million-year-old crystals can be broken out of rocks with a hammer and chisel or collected by casually looking around the prospect area. Admission is $10 for adults and $8 for children.

Royal Peacock Mine

What: Black fire opals
Where: Virgin Valley, Nevada
Web: www.royalpeacock.com

The Virgin Valley in Northern Nevada is a stark corner of the world, but come once and you might find yourself planning a return trip. Digging isn't cheap, though. They charge $180 per person per day to dig in the fire-opal-rich bank area and $75 to dig in the mine dumps and tailings (piles of rock extracted from the mine).

Cherokee Ruby Mine

What: Rubies (plus sapphires, garnets, and moonstones)
Where: Franklin, North Carolina
Web: www.cherokeerubymine.com

At the Cherokee Ruby Mine, you're provided with a seat cushion and a screen box and shown samples of rough gemstones. Then you proceed to the flume line, where you fill your screen box and begin sluicing. This is a friendly, family-owned operation whose website lists "Mom" on a list of "Our Gems." Awww. Admission is $7 for adults, $4 for children, and shade umbrellas are available to rent for $1.

Emerald Hollow Mine

What: Emeralds
Where: Hiddenite, North Carolina
Web: www.hiddenitegems.com

Emerald Hollow Mine is the only emerald mine in the United States open to public prospecting. You'll sit at one of three sluiceways, where you can pick over buckets taken directly from the mine. It's a chance to find not only emeralds, but also aquamarines, sapphires, garnets, topaz, and amethysts. The $5 admission includes one free bucket. You can purchase additional buckets, and digging and creek prospecting are available at an added cost too.

Gold Prospecting Adventures

What: Gold
Where: Jamestown, California
Web: www.goldprospecting.com

The California Gold Rush may have been 150 years ago, but that's nothing in geological time. At Gold Prospecting Adventures families can belly up to a sluice box (which processes the buckets of gravel more efficiently than an old-fashioned gold pan) and search for flakes of gold. Guides are on hand to help, and while gold nuggets aren't guaranteed, historical nuggets are. The family price for the 3-hour Sluice Box and Pan Adventure is $155 for two adults and three children.

http://www.fodors.com/

Queen's 10,000 diamonds on display in London

On Thursday, June 28, 2012, a press preview provided the first entrance to 'Diamonds: A Jubilee Celebration,' an exhibition which forms part of the summer opening of Buckingham Palace. This exhibition, part of the Diamond Jubilee celebration of Queen Elizabeth II, displays over 10,000 diamonds set in works that were commissioned and acquired by six monarchs over three centuries.

The items are from the Queen's personal collection and the Royal Collection. Pieces such as the Delhi Durbar Tiara (shown in slideshow) are being displayed to the public for the first time. The tiara, which King George V fondly referred to as "May’s best tiara," was made in 1911 for Queen Mary to wear to the Durbar, a ceremonial gathering in Delhi which marked the succession of King George as King Emperor.

The Diamond Diadem, despite its feminine associations, was commissioned for George IV at his coronation in 1821. Queen Elizabeth II is shown wearing it on British and Commonwealth stamps, as well as on some coins and bank notes. It contains 1,333 brilliant-cut diamonds, including a four-carat pale yellow brilliant diamond.

The Girls of Great Britain and Ireland Tiara (see slideshow) was a present to Princess Victoria Mary of Teck from the ‘Girls of Great Britain and Ireland’ on the occasion of her marriage to the Duke of York, later King George V, in 1893.

As if anyone needs a reminder of the glory of royalty, these beautiful gems show how monarchs over the centuries have used diamonds as a display of power, might and magnificence.

The exhibition opens on Saturday, June 30, 2012 and runs through July 8. The exhibition is closed through July, then opens again from July 31 to October 7, 2012.


- www.examiner.com