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When I first started at Rapaport, I was a bit of a novice to the world of high-jewelry auctions. My jaw was nearly on the floor when I saw some of the prices the lots would fetch. I remember the CTF Pink Star nabbing $71.2 million in 2017 at Sotheby’s Hong Kong, and the Williamson Pink Star going for $57.5 million there only five years later.
Over the last eight years of my tenure here, my surprise has faded, to be replaced by a slightly jaded outlook. “Oh, that diamond only sold for $20 million, that’s not so great,” I remember thinking to myself. Then I reminded myself that in no world where I operate is $20 million not a huge number. I realized I was missing the thrill of those early days of auction frenzy, when insanely large numbers for beautiful blues, yellows and pinks would regularly appear on my screen.
However, this most recent spate of auctions has reinvigorated some of those early-day thrills. While the $50 million Golconda Blue was pulled from sale at Christie’s before it had a chance to rake in the $100 million that experts were predicting, the point was, it was there. The press release hit my inbox, I opened it, and I felt excited again. The Mediterranean Blue, with an estimate in the range of $20 million, excited me again. The Marie-Thérèse Pink Diamond — steeped in history, with roots potentially involving Marie Antoinette — excited me again.
In 2025, I found renewed vigor for auctions. The auctions themselves had renewed vigor; the glory days of yesteryear are not gone. As the new year begins, I feel eager for the upcoming auction season. Here’s to a sparkling 2026!
Main image: Leah Meirovich, Rapaport managing editor and special edition editor. (Leah Meirovich)
