Bijoux "Crocodile", "Cobra", "Dragon" & "Protomée d'éléphant"

Important bracelet rigide ouvrant en argent noirci ciselé et partiellement vermeillé. Photo Thierry De Maigret

figurant un crocodile, le corps pavé de grenats verts, la gueule enserrant une citrine ronde facettée. Poids brut: 132.80 g. Diam: 5.5 cm. Long: 15.5 cm. Estimation : 1 500 - 2 000 €

Bague en argent noirci, stylisant un cobra dressé. Photo Thierry De Maigret

le corps pavé de saphirs ronds facettés, les yeux en saphirs jaunes et la tête surmontée d'un cabochon d'améthyste en serti clos. Poids brut: 53 g. TDD: 51.5. Estimation : 1 000 - 1 500 €

Bague en argent partiellement vermeillé. Photo Thierry De Maigret

stylisant une tête de dragon rehaussée de pierres précieuses et fines, retenant une améthyste dans la gueule. Poids brut: 40.80 g. TDD: 52. Estimation : 1 000 - 1 500 €

Importante bague en vermeil, stylisant une protomée d'éléphant (possiblement le dieu Ganesh). Photo Thierry De Maigret

rehaussée d'émail et agrémentée de pierres précieuses et fines. (égrisures) Poids brut: 47 g. TDD: 57.5. Estimation : 400 - 600 €

Thierry De Maigret. Mercredi 01 juin à 14h00. DROUOT RICHELIEU salle 3.. EMail : contact@thierrydemaigret.com - Tél. : 01 44 83 95 20

An inscribed ruby-red glass snuff bottle ('Extended Refinement'), Treasury 5, no. 751. Wanya xuan mark, 1700–1770

An inscribed ruby-red glass snuff bottle ('Extended Refinement'), Treasury 5, no. 751. Wanya xuan mark, 1700–1770. Photo Bonhams

Transparent ruby-red glass with a few air bubbles of different sizes, some of oval form, and gold pigment; with a concave lip and flat, bulging rectangular foot; engraved low on one side in seal script, Wanya xuan ('Studio for Appreciating the Elegant'), the mark filled with gold pigment. Height: 8 cm. Mouth/lip: 0.56/1.10 cm. Stopper: turquoise; nephrite collar. Sold for HK $66,000

Condition: tiny chip partly polished out on one edge of the foot; otherwise, workshop condition

Provenance: Zhirou Zhai Collection
Hugh M. Moss Ltd (1993)

Published: Kleiner 1995, no. 122
Treasury 5, no. 751

Exhibited: British Museum, London, June-October 1995
Israel Museum, Jerusalem, July-November 1997

Commentary: The group of monochrome glass bottles bearing the Wanya xuan hall mark is among the most fascinating and mysterious of all groups of glass bottles. We know that an example in the J & J Collection, to which a scholar has added engraved decoration, cannot have been made later than 1795 (the date of the scholar's death) and might have been decorated as early as 1765. We also know that there is an imperial connection, for yellow glass is among the colours used, and on any bottle made so early use of the imperial colour would have been significant. The group, with many others cited, is discussed in Moss, Graham, and Tsang 1993, under no. 337.
Bolstering the imperial connection is the use of ruby-red glass derived from gold. This recipe may have been a closely guarded secret at the imperial glassworks during the early phase of glass production. If the link were not to the emperor himself, then the mystery patron who produced this series of snuff bottles (but, strangely, no other vessels bearing the mark) may have had imperial connections. One authority has suggested that they may be the products of Yinti at his private glassworks in Beijing (Curtis 1995, p. xxi). Yinti (1672-1734), who was until his disgrace in 1708 the heir designate to the Kangxi emperor, set up his own glassworks at his palace outside the Forbidden City, the Xiang'an gong. We know that he produced excellent glass that was presented to the glass-loving emperor regularly, other of his wares also being highly valued among the influential minority, so this theory remains a possibility. The most significant fact about the prince's activities in the glassmaking field, however, is that they happened at all. Setting up a glassworks is not a difficult matter, and if Yinti had a private glassworks it is possible that other princes or high officials did, too. This would create the conditions necessary for a group such as this one, which are early, have an imperial connection, and are marked with the name of a private residence. The absence of records in this context is not surprising, for we know of Prince Yinti's activities only through a casual mention by a Jesuit missionary, Antoine Gaubil, writing to his masters in Europe in 1738 some years after the prince died. No records of Yinti's glassworks have yet come to light from the Chinese side.

We know from Treasury 5, no. 804, bearing an authentic Yongzheng mark, that ruby-glass at this time was prone to be swirled, flawed, and bubble-suffused. The same may have been true of the Kangxi period. We do not know whether a problem afflicting the imperial glassworks would necessarily have plagued a private, princely glassworks, but it is likely that the same expertise and technology would have been made available to Yinti, who was close to the Jesuits. Among the ruby-glass examples bearing the Wanya xuan mark, several, such as this one, are of excellent quality, while others, such as Treasury 5, no. 753, are less pure. The latter is also considerably more convincingly worn than most.

We noted the elegance of the J & J example in ruby-red glass (no. 337) because it was taller and thinner than the typical shape. This one, taller yet by more than a centimetre, is—unusually--waisted in the main profile, giving it an even more distinctive appearance among bottles of the group. In discussing the state of perfection of many in this group, it is worth bearing in mind that they may have been repolished more than once over the centuries. Such is the case with this one, and considerable wear is visible beneath the recently polished surface that is, itself, beginning to accumulate a new layer of scratch-marks, suggesting the polishing was not carried out recently.
As usual, the mark is inscribed low on one narrow side, which has been faceted by the lapidary after the bottle was blown. It is in the usual seal script with the standard formalization for the characters and is filled with gold pigment that, in this case as in so many, has probably been re-gilt recently.

紅寶石色玻璃鼻煙壺

透明寶石紅玻璃（具零星大小不同的氣泡，有橢圓形的）金色彩料； 凹唇，平底，一面下部刻金彩"玩雅軒"篆款
1700–1770
高：8 厘米
口經/唇經：0.56/1.10 厘米
蓋： 綠松石; 閃玉座

狀態敘述： 底一邊磨除了小缺口，尚存痕跡；此外，出坊狀態

來源： Zhirou Zhai Collection
Hugh M. Moss Ltd (1993)

文獻： Kleiner 1995, 編號 122
Treasury 5, 編號 751

展覽:  British Museum, London, June-October 1995
Israel Museum, Jerusalem, July-November 1997

說明: 這一批單色玻璃鼻煙壺，Moss, Graham, and Tsang 1993, 編號 337有詳細的論述。有的專家認為，它們可能是恂邵王胤禔(1672-1734)在他自己建設的玻璃廠作的(Curtis 1995, 頁 xxi)。帶玩雅軒款的寶石紅玻璃煙壺中，有的品質非常好，有的，如經過歲月磨耗比較長的Treasury 5, 編號 753，不太純潔。這意味者它們是技術問題還沒解決時期的產品。本壺在拋光表面之下呈現著相當多的損耗，可知至少曾有一次重新拋光過，但不是近來的，因為已經有新的刮痕。

Bonhams. FINE CHINESE ART, 25 May 2011 to 26 May 2011, Hong Kong, Island Shangri-La Hotel www.bonhams.com

Parure "Serpent" en argent noirci martelé et vermeil

Elégant collier torque rigide. Photo Thierry De Maigret

ouvrant en argent noirci martelé et vermeil, figurant un serpent au corps ponctué de cabochons de rubis dans un pavage de pierres précieuses et fines, la gueule retenant en pampille une perle de culture baroquée amovible. Poids brut: 153.30 g. Tour de cou: 40 cm env. Estimation : 1 500 - 2 000 €

Bracelet rigide ouvrant en argent noirci et vermeil, Photo Thierry De Maigret

stylisant un serpent, le corps ponctué d'une chute de cabochons de rubis en serti clos dans un pavage de pierres précieuses et fines. Fermoir à cliquet. Poids brut: 97.80 g. Diam: 5.5 cm. Long: 10 cm. Estimation : 1 000 - 1 500 €

Paire de pendants d'oreilles. Photo Thierry De Maigret

en argent noirci et vermeil, stylisant un serpent orné d'une chute de cabochons de rubis en serti clos dans un pavage de saphirs et de topazes ronds facettés, la queue retenant en pampille une perle de culture baroquée amovible. Poids brut: 42.70 g. Haut: 10.5 cm. Estimation : 500 - 800 €

Thierry De Maigret. Mercredi 01 juin à 14h00. DROUOT RICHELIEU salle 3.. EMail : contact@thierrydemaigret.com - Tél. : 01 44 83 95 20

A yellow glass 'kui dragons' snuff bottle ('Imperial Show Stopper'). Treasury 5, no. 828. Imperial glassworks, Beijing 1736–1770

A yellow glass 'kui dragons' snuff bottle ('Imperial Show Stopper'). Treasury 5, no. 828. Imperial glassworks, Beijing, 1736–1770. Photo Bonhams

bubbles; with a flat lip and recessed, slightly convex foot surrounded by a protruding, rounded footrim; carved with a continuous formalized archaistic design of a band of confronting kui dragons framed top and bottom by lotus petals and set on an engraved, floral diaper ground, with further lotus-petal borders at the upper neck and around the base, the narrow sides with antelope handles. Height: 6.37 cm. Mouth/lip: 0.85/1.63 cm. Stopper: coral; pearl finial; turquoise collar; probably original. Sold for HK$ 432,000

Condition: workshop condition

Provenance:: Unrecorded source (prior to 1973)
Hugh Moss (1981)
Belfort Collection (1986)

Published: : Snuff Bottles of the Ch'ing Dynasty, p. 68, no. 65
Stevens 1976, no.186
Très précieuses tabatières chinoises 1982, p. 13, no. 69
Kleiner 1987, no. 66
Kleine Schätze aus China 1993, cover and p. 6
Kleiner 1995, no. 113
Next Magazine, March 1997, p. 128
Treasury 5, no. 828

Exhibited:: Hugh M. Moss Ltd, October 1974
Hong Kong Museum of Art, October-December 1978
L'Arcade Chaumet, Paris, Brussels and Amsterdam, June - August 1982
Sydney L. Moss Ltd., London, October 1987
Creditanstalt, Vienna, May-June 1993
British Museum, London, June-October 1995
Israel Museum, Jerusalem, July-November 1997

Commentary: This is one of a small group of spectacular imperial yellow glass snuff bottles that we can confidently attribute to the imperial glassworks, and probably to the first half of the Qianlong period. A remarkably similar bottle, formerly in the Edmund F. Dwyer Collection, bears an unquestionably genuine Qianlong reign mark in a style commensurate with the beginning of the reign (Christie's, London, 12 October 1987, lot 73 and Christie's, New York, 3 December 1992, lot 364) and another, from the Wise Collection (Stevens 1976, no. 186) also bears a genuine Qianlong reign mark, although this is not mentioned in the caption. Another example, lacking a reign mark, is in the Mullin Collection (ibid., no. 188 and Chinese Snuff Bottles No. 5, p. 25 fig. 8). The Dwyer bottle exhibits similar handles, although with a squarer snout more closely resembling that of a buffalo. This beast also appears as part of the main decoration, where it is unambiguously bovine, raising the possibility that the antelopes here are self-conscious buffaloes illustrating the benefits of a little Californian surgery.

Our attribution to the imperial glassworks is based upon the imperial yellow colour and the impeccable level of carving. The style of this example is found in other materials, such as nephrite.

One of the most spectacular of the group, this was a great favourite of Hugh Moss's during the many years when it resided comfortably in his private collection, being quite the most spectacular imperial yellow glass he owned. It is alarming, however, that in all the years of ownership, and all the years it has been in the Belfort Collection - which he knew well - not to mention the Bloch Collection, where he has played a curatorial role, he overlooked one blindingly obvious fact: the stopper appears to be the original one. It is thus one of the few bottles of a type always intended to have a contrasting stopper where we can be reasonably certain this is the case. While we can never be absolutely sure of originality as opposed to suitability with regard to contrasting stoppers, we are confident that this was indeed originally designed for the bottle, for a number of reasons. It fits perfectly and looks splendid, fulfilling two timeless criteria for stoppers. It is obviously old, with well-patinated surfaces, particularly evident from the turquoise collar, whose slightly discolouration renders it an even green on the outside edge but a paler colour underneath, where it was protected from both light and the touch of the hand. The collar is not the customary flawed turquoise, with traces of the common brown matrix, but is of even, flawless colour, extremely rare for a turquoise collar, while the coral is similarly flawless and of brilliant colour. In addition, the coral cabochon itself is of deep, even, and flawless colour. Were a transcendently fine snuff bottle to be made for the emperor, it would indubitably have been crowned using the finest materials available. Atop the coral we find not the usual discreet, small bead finial, but half of a fine pearl. This treasure was associated with the emperor and reserved for his court hat. Finally, the stopper still possesses what appears to be the original spoon, typical of the beautifully carved and imaginative spoons of the Qianlong palace workshops, produced, no doubt, in the imperial atelier. Its shaft is so elegant and thin that its survival is little short of miraculous. It is of ideal length, as defined by other examples where we may be equally sure that the spoon is the original.

黃玻璃刻夔紋鼻煙壺

透亮的黃玻璃，零星的小氣泡;平唇，微凸斂底，突出圓棱圈足;雕兩相對夔紋，言一層上下各飾一圈蓮瓣紋，頸部和腹下部各亦飾一圈蓮瓣紋，羚羊啣環耳，壺地刻菱形花紋
北京御用玻璃作坊，1736-1770
高：6.37 厘米
口經/唇經：0.85/1.63 厘米
蓋： 珊瑚; 珍珠頂飾; 綠松石座; 大概是原件

狀態敘述： 出作坊狀態

來源：Unrecorded source (prior to 1973)
Hugh Moss (1981)
Belfort Collection (1986)

文獻： Snuff Bottles of the Ch'ing Dynasty, p. 68, 編號 65
Stevens 1976, no.186
Très précieuses tabatières chinoises 1982, p. 13, 編號 69
Kleiner 1987, 編號 66
Kleine Schätze aus China 1993, cover and p. 6
Kleiner 1995, 編號 113
Next Magazine, March 1997, p. 128
Treasury 5, 編號 828

展覽:  Hugh M. Moss Ltd, October 1974
Hong Kong Museum of Art, October-December 1978
L'Arcade Chaumet, Paris, Brussels and Amsterdam, June - August 1982
Sydney L. Moss Ltd., London, October 1987
Creditanstalt, Vienna, May-June 1993
British Museum, London, June-October 1995
Israel Museum, Jerusalem, July-November 1997

說明: 其他黃玻璃御製煙壺和詳細論述，請參閱本壺的英文說明。本壺是莫士撝珍藏裏的寶貝，它在Belfort珍藏和伯樂珍藏的時候，莫氏從來沒有意識到，蓋肯定是原件。它跟壺身很符合，肯定是舊的；座的顏色很均勻，不像一般性的綠松石座，而珊瑚上的頂飾不是平常的小珠子，是高級珍珠的半球。從各個方面看，它一定是給乾隆皇帝作的。

Bonhams. FINE CHINESE ART, 25 May 2011 to 26 May 2011, Hong Kong, Island Shangri-La Hotel www.bonhams.com

Étonnante bague en argent doré et noirci, surmontée d'une tête de mort couronnée

Étonnante bague en argent doré et noirci, surmontée d'une tête de mort couronnée.  Photo Thierry De Maigret

habillée d'une améthyste ovale facettée, dans un décor végétal, l'ensemble pavé de pierres précieuses et fines. Poids brut: 32 g. TDD: 50.5. Estimation : 1 000 - 1 500 €

Thierry De Maigret. Mercredi 01 juin à 14h00. DROUOT RICHELIEU salle 3.. EMail : contact@thierrydemaigret.com - Tél. : 01 44 83 95 20

A sapphire-blue glass 'peaches' snuff bottle ('Imperial Peach'). Treasury 5, no. 839. Imperial glassworks, Beijing, 1730–1790

A sapphire-blue glass 'peaches' snuff bottle ('Imperial Peach'). Treasury 5, no. 839. Imperial glassworks, Beijing, 1730–1790. Photo Bonhams

Transparent sapphire-blue glass with a few scattered small air bubbles, with a flat lip and flat foot; carved with a continuous design of a severed, leafy branch with two peaches growing from it. Height: 5.1 cm. Mouth/lip: 0.56/1.5 cm. Stopper: tourmaline; gilt-silver collar.

Condition: insignificant miniscule nibbles to inner lip; lip probably repolished at some time, and, given the lack of wear, the rest of the bottle may also have been repolished. General relative condition: extremely good  Sold for HK$132,000

藍寶石色玻璃桃紋鼻煙壺. 北京御用玻璃作坊，1730～1790

Provenance::  Private collection, Brazil
Hugh M. Moss Ltd., Hong Kong (1997)

Published:: Treasury 5, no. 839

Commentary: Although the peach shape of the bottle may be less than obvious, the small fruit on the severed branch is foliated with leaves typical of the peach tree, seen also on a nephrite brush washer in the National Palace Museum, for example. Although this design is rare in glass, another exists in yellow glass (suggesting a link with the court), several in white nephrite, and even one in tourmaline. The existence of a group of bottles, all of the same type but fashioned from different materials, with the same subject and of similar style, suggests a multi-skills environment such as the palace workshops, while the yellow glass example bears testimony to their imperial nature. While this would not completely rule out the possibility of hardstone bottles being carved for the court at a centre such as Suzhou, it seems unlikely, given the range of materials and the ready availability of local facilities for their production near the court.

This sapphire-blue glass, brilliant and pure, is typical of the finest from the imperial glassworks but exhibits no hint of crizzling, suggesting that it is neither from the Yongzheng period nor earlier. For the entire range of these peach bottles, in fact, a Qianlong date is suggested. It seems likely that very popular types, particularly plain bottles, might have been repeated over a long period, but specific designs such as this may have been shorter-lived.

藍寶石色玻璃桃紋鼻煙壺

透明藍寶石藍玻璃，零星的小氣泡，平，平底
北京御用玻璃作坊，1730-1790
高：5.1 厘米
口經/唇經：0.56/1.5 厘米
蓋： 碧璽; 鎏金銀座

狀態敘述：唇內沿呈微不足道的咬痕；唇大概是重新拋光過的，看壺身沒有磨耗痕跡，可能是全部重新拋光過。一般相對的狀態： 極善

來源： Private collection, Brazil
Hugh M. Moss Ltd., Hong Kong (1997)

文獻：Treasury 5, 編號 839

說明: 本壺的桃形不太明顯，但雕出來的小果實及葉子就是桃式的，可參見台北故宮收藏的桃式玉筆洗。黃色玻璃的例子也有，還有白玉的，甚至碧璽的。

Bonhams. FINE CHINESE ART, 25 May 2011 to 26 May 2011, Hong Kong, Island Shangri-La Hotel www.bonhams.com

Cinq bijoux de Jean Vendome @ Thierry De Maigret

Jean Vendome. Paire de clips d'oreilles en or. Année: 2003.  Photo Thierry De Maigret

ornés de tranches de tourmaline et de 2 émeraudes en serti-clos sur feuille d'or froissé. Poinçon de maître. Pièce unique. Poids brut: 37.10 g. Dim: 5.5 x 3 cm.

Bibliographie: photographie de la broche en parure de cette paire de clips d'oreilles page 331 de l'ouvrage: Jean Vendome, les voyages précieux d'un créateur. Marlène Crégut-Ledué. Editions Faton.

Jean Vendome. "Chassé-croisé''. Année: 2005.  Photo Thierry De Maigret

Bague d'auriculaire en or, ornée d'ammonites et d'un motif ''caviar''. Poinçon de maître. Pièce unique. Poids brut: 24 g. TDD: 49. Estimation : 1 500 - 2 000 €

Bibliographie: photographie de cette bague p 252 de l'ouvrage ''Jean Vendome, les voyages précieux d'un créateur''. Marlène Cregut-Ledué. Editions Faton.

Jean Vendome. Paire de clips d'oreilles en or. Années: 80.  Photo Thierry De Maigret

ornés d'une dent de requin surmontée d'une ammonite. Poinçon de maître.  Pièce unique. Poids brut: 35 g. Long: 6.5 cm. Estimation : 1 200 - 1 400 €

Jean Vendome. Broche en or en ''virgule''.  Années: 80.  Photo Thierry De Maigret

ornée d'une ammonite aux extrémités. Poinçon de maître.Poids brut: 16.90 g. Long: 10.8 cm. Estimation : 1 000 - 1 300 €

Jean Vendome. Bague d'auriculaire en or gris ornée d'une aigue-marine.  Années: 70. Photo Thierry De Maigret

taillée à pans coupés, la monture à section carrée. Signée.Dans son écrin Poids brut: 6.60 g. TDD: 45. Estimation : 1 400 - 1 600 €

Thierry De Maigret. Mercredi 01 juin à 14h00. DROUOT RICHELIEU salle 3.. EMail : contact@thierrydemaigret.com - Tél. : 01 44 83 95 20

Rhinoceros horn libation cups & A rare Arabic-inscribed rhinoceros horn stemcup. Late Ming dynasty

A finely carved 'Ode to the Red Cliff' rhinoceros horn libation cup. Late Ming / early Qing dynasty. Photo Bonhams

Superbly carved in deep relief to depict a scene from 'Ode to the Red Cliff', depicting Su Dongpo accompanied by two other figures seated on a raft on a fast-flowing river, all below large, cragged rock faces, a cascading waterfall and over-hanging pine and wutong trees, with a scholar and attendant seated on the riverbank, a large gnarled pine tree forming the openwork handle, the horn of a warm honey tone, carved wood stand. 17.5cm wide. (2). Sold for HK$ 2,280,000

明末/清初 犀角雕赤壁賦杯

Provenance來源:  Old English family collection, acquired in the 19th century, and thence by descent to the current owner

The subject matter of 'The Ode to the Red Cliff', the famous poem by the Song dynasty painter Su Shi, was reserved for some of the finest rhinoceros horn libation cups of the late Ming / early Qing dynasty. For an example of similar high quality in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, donated by J. Pierpont Morgan, see Jan Chapman, The Art of Rhinoceros Horn Carving in China, London, 1999, pg. 210, pl. 289.

A finely carved 'Ode to the Red Cliff' rhinoceros horn libation cup. Late Ming / early Qing dynasty. Photo Bonhams

Superbly carved in deep relief to depict a scene from 'Ode to the Red Cliff', showing two figures and their attendants seated on a raft on a fast-flowing river, with further figures observing and engaged in various pursuits on the riverbanks, all amidst large over-hanging willow and prunus trees, a large gnarled pine tree forming the openwork handle, a rock face inscribed with a fourteen-character poem, the horn of a dark chocolate brown tone, carved wood stand. 17.3cm wide. (2). Sold for HK$ 2,280,000

明末/清初 犀角雕赤壁賦杯

Provenance來源:  Old English family collection, acquired in the 19th century, and thence by descent to the current owner

A superb carved rhinoceros horn 'floral' libation cup. Late Ming / early Qing dynasty. Photo Bonhams

The sumptuous cup sensitively carved with full naturalistic attention to detail, with lobes emanating from the rim and extending inside, the exterior boldly carved inverying levels of relief with peony, plum blossom and other flowers depicted in luxuriant stages of growth, issuing from long coiling stems depicted intertwined with each other, the horn of a rich brown tone with a tinge of orange. 17.3cm wide. Sold for HK$ 1,020,000

明末/清初 犀角雕花卉紋杯

Provenance來源: Private British collection

A rare Arabic-inscribed rhinoceros horn stemcup. Late Ming dynasty. Photo Bonhams

Of deep rounded form supported on a pronounced splayed foot, incised around the exterior with an Islamic invocation. 10cm high. Sold for HK$ 240,000

晚明 犀角雕梵字紋足杯

An exceptional coloured diamond and diamond necklace

An exceptional coloured diamond and diamond necklace. Photo: Christie's Images Ltd. 2011

Designed as a line of twenty-eight graduated pear-shaped diamonds alternating with brilliant-cut pink diamonds, mounted in 18k white and rose gold, 39.6 cm long. Estimate

Accompanied by twenty-six reports dated 11 February 2008 to 14 February 2011 from the Gemological Institute of America stating that the twenty-six diamonds weighing from 7.58 to 0.71 carats are D colour, internally flawless clarity

The total weight of the certified diamonds is 67.63 carats

鑽石項鍊，配以小粉紅鑽，鑲18k白金及粉紅金，中間主石重7.58克拉，其中26顆梨形D/IF鑽石共重67.63克拉，附GIA證書，項鍊長度39.6公分

Christie's. Hong Kong Magnificent Jewels, 31 May 2011, Convention Hall  www.christies.com

An important unmounted diamond

An important unmounted diamond. Photo: Christie's Images Ltd. 2011

An unmounted brilliant-cut diamond weighing 18.88 carats. Estimate HK$25,000,000 - HK$40,000,000 ($3,226,188 - $5,161,900)

Accompanied by report no.513053566 dated 8 February 2011 from the Gemological Institute of America stating that the 18.88 carat diamond is D colour, flawless clarity, with excellent cut, polish and symmetry

Also accompanied by a supplemental letter from the Gemological Institute of America stating the 18.88 carat diamond has been determined to be a type IIa. Type IIa diamonds are the most chemically pure type of diamond and often have exceptional optical transparency. Type IIa diamonds were first identified as originating from India (particularly from the Golconda region) but have since been recovered in all major diamond-producing regions of the world. Among famous gem diamonds, the 530.20 carat Cullinan and the 105.60 carat Koh-i-noor, are examples of Type IIa

18.88克拉圓形D/FL Type IIa鑽石〔極優切割、打磨及比例〕，附GIA證書

Christie's. Hong Kong Magnificent Jewels, 31 May 2011, Convention Hall  www.christies.com