In this webpage we have published an important table listing famous pearls/pearl jewelry/pearl settings that performed exceptionally well at public auctions, arranged in chronological order of their sale, begining with the Mancini drop-shaped pearl ear-pendants that sold at Christie’s New York in October 1979 and ending with the Seven-Strand Natural Pearl and Diamond Necklace, that sold for a staggering US$ 9,081,662 at Christie’s Geneva in November 2013.
Important information that could be derived from this table are also given below the table.
List of Pearls/Pearl Jewelry/Pearl Settings that Performed Exceptionally Well at Public Auctions Arranged in Chronological Order of their Sale
| S/N | Name of pearl/pearl jewelry | Probable period of origin | weight/no. of rows/no of pearls etc. | Date of auction | Price realized |
| 1 | Mancini pearls -drop shape pearl pendants | 1500-1600 | 400 grains | Christie’s New York Oct.1979 | USD 253,000 |
| 2 | Mona Bismarck 2-strand pearl necklace | 1920-1930 | Double-strand of 70 pearls | Sotheby’s Geneva May 1986 | USD 410,000 |
| 3 | Empress Eugenie tiara | 1853 | 212 pearls, 2,520 grains | Sold to Friends of Louvre Society Nov 1992 by privately negotiated sale | USD 650,000 |
| 4 | Nina Dyer black pearl necklace | 1950s | Three-strand/151 natural black pearls | Christie’s Geneva Nov 1997 | USD 913,320 |
| 5 | Barbara Hutton pearl necklace | 1600-1666 | Single-Strand/44 natural pearls/ total weight of 1,816.68 grains | Christie’s Geneva, May 1992Christie’s Geneva, Nov 1999 | USD 580,000USD 1,470,000 |
| 6 | Double-strand natural pearl necklace by Cartier | Historical provenance not revealed | Two-strand necklace with 88 natural pearls | Christie’s Geneva, Nov 2004 | USD 3,100,000 |
| 7 | La Regente | 1811 | 302.68 grains | Christie’s Geneva,Nov 2005 | USD 2,483,968 |
| 8 | Princess Margaret’s Five-row Art Deco Pearl and Diamond Necklace | 1948 | Five-Strand Necklace, Made up of 319 natural pearls | Christie’s London, June 2006 | USD 509,312 |
| 9 | Gulf pearl parure designed by Harry Winston | 1932-1978 | Consisting of a 4-rowed pearl and diamond necklace; 3-rowed pearl and diamond bracelet; a pair of pearl and diamond ear-pendants and a pearl and diamond cluster ring | Christie’s Geneva Nov 2006 | USD 4,100,000 |
| 10 | Baroda pearl necklace | 1856-1870 | Double-strand with 68 natural pearls from the original 7-strand necklace | Christie’s New York April 2007 | USD 7,096,000 |
| 11 | Duchess of Windsor pearl necklace | 1910-1936 | Single-strand of 28 natural pearls. Total weight 1266.33 grains | Sotheby’s Geneva April 1987Sotheby’s New York Dec 2007 | USD 733,333USD 3,625,000 |
| 12 | Yellow to Pinkish Orange Near-Spherical Nacreous Pearl | Second largest freshwater pearl. 60.36-carats/ 241.44-grains | Christie’s Dubai, April 2008 | USD 713,000, | |
| 13 | Umm Kulthum pearl necklace | 1880 | nine-strand pearl necklace with 1,888 pearls | Christie’s Dubai, April 2008 | USD 1,390,000 |
| 14 | A superb four-row natural pearl and diamond necklace | 19th-century | Made up of 219 natural saltwater pearls | Christie’s Dubai, April 2008 | USD 1,743,400 |
| 15 | Pearl necklace from an unidentified notable collection | Historical provenance not revealed | Single-strand necklace with 41 natural pearls | Sotheby’s Geneva, Nov 2008 | USD 1,321,110 |
| 16 | Multi-strand pearl and diamond festoon necklace of unknown provenance | Historical provenance not revealed | Nine-strand pearl and diamond festoon necklace. Length 645mm to 1060mm | Sotheby’s Geneva, Nov 2008 | USD 946,610 |
| 17 | Pearl Carpet of Baroda | 1860 | Encrusted with 1.5-2.0 million natural seed pearls. Other encrusted jewels include diamonds, rubies, emeralds and sapphires | Sotheby’s Arts of the Islamic World Auction, Doha, Qatar, March 2009 | USD 5,500,000 |
| 18 | Emperor, Yongzheng’s (Yinzhen) Ceremonial Eastern Pearl Court Necklace | 1722-1735 | Single-Strand necklace, made up of 108 freshwater eastern pearls | Sotheby’s Hong Kong, April 8, 2010 | USD 8,700,000 |
| 19 | La Peregrina Pearl and Necklace designed by Cartier | 1513 | Double-Strand pearl necklace, also incorporating rubies and diamonds. Weight of La Peregrina alone 203.84 grains | Sotheby’s London 1969Christie’s New York Dec 2011 | USD 37,000USD 11,000,000 |
| 20 | Five-strand Natural Pearl Necklace | Made up of 349 saltwater natural pearls. range – 4.10-11.35 mm | Christie’s New York, April 2012 | USD 1,672,900 | |
| 21 | Cowdray Pearl Necklace | Single row of 38 graduated natural grey pearls | Christie’s London, June 2012 | USD 3,353,700 | |
| 22 | Double-strand Natural Pearl Necklace by Cartier | Made up of 120 pearls. Range – 6.50-12.25 mm | Christie’s New York, Oct. 2012 | USD 3,660,000 | |
| 23 | Three-strand Natural Pearl Necklace | Made up of 180 natural pearls ranging in size from 4.95-11.05 mm | Christie’s New York, April 2013 | USD 1,131,750 | |
| 24 | Very Fine Natural Pearl and Diamond Necklace by Chaumet | Three-Strand graduated natural pearl necklace. Pearls range in size 4.6-9.9 mm | Sotheby’s Geneva, May 2013 | USD 1,198,277 | |
| 25 | Gina Lollobrigida’s natural, drop-shaped pearl and diamond ear-pendants | Originally from the collection of House of Habsburg | Dimensions of the pearls 15.6×12.1×24.9 mm 15.9×13.8×23.3 mm | Sotheby’s Geneva, May 2013 | USD 2,391,322 |
| 26 | A Single-row Natural Pearl, Emerald and Diamond Necklace | Made up of 23 slightly graduated natural pearls. Range – 10.4-13.7 mm | Christie’s Geneva, May 2013 | USD 8,460,675 | |
| 27 | Seven-strand Natural Pearl and Diamond Necklace | Probably 19th or early 20th Century | 614 natural saltwater pearls | Christie’s Geneva, Nov 2013 | USD 9,081,662 |
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Information that can be derived from the above table
1) The La Peregrina Pearl and double-strand pearl necklace by Cartier from Elizabeth Taylor’s jewelry collection that sold for US$ 11,000,000 at Christie’s New York in December 2011, is the most expensive piece of natural pearl jewelry and natural pearl necklace in the world as well as the most expensive double-strand pearl necklace in the world.
2) The Seven-Strand Natural Pearl and Diamond Necklace, the subject of this webpage, is the second most expensive natural pearl necklace in the world, selling for US$ 9,081,662 at Christie’s Geneva in November 2013. This necklace is also the most expensive multistrand natural pearl necklace in the world.
3) Emperor, Yongzheng’s (Yinzhen) Single-Strand Ceremonial Eastern Pearl Court Necklace, made up of 108 freshwater eastern pearls that sold for US$ 8,700,000 at Sotheby’s Hong Kong, in April 2010 is the 3rd most expensive natural pearl necklace in the world. It is also the most expensive natural freshwater pearl necklace in the world and also the most expensive single-strand natural pearl necklace in the world.
4) A Single-Strand Natural Pearl, Emerald and Diamond Necklace of unknown provenance, made up of 23 slightly graduated natural pearls, with a range in size of 10.4-13.7 mm that sold for US$ 8,460,675 at Christie’s Geneva, in May 2013 is the 4th most expensive natural pearl necklace in the world. It is also the 2nd most expensive single-strand natural pearl necklace in the world, and the most expensive single-strand saltwater natural pearl necklace in the world.
5) The Double-Strand Baroda Pearl Necklace that sold for US$ 7,096,000 at Christie’s New York in April 2007, is the 5th most expensive natural pearl necklace in the world, and the 2nd most expensive double-strand natural pearl necklace in the world.
6) Double-strand Natural Pearl Necklace by Cartier, made up of 120 pearls with range in size of 6.50-12.25 mm that sold for USD 3,660,000 at Christie’s New York in October 2012, is the 6th most expensive natural pearl necklace in the world, and the 3rd most expensive double-strand natural pearl necklace in the world.
7) Single-Strand Duchess of Windsor Natural Pearl Necklace made of 28 natural pearls that sold for US$ 3,625,000 at Sotheby’s New York in Dec 2007, is the 7th most expensive pearl necklace in the world. It is the 3rd most expensive single-strand natural pearl necklace in the world and the 2nd most expensive single-strand natural saltwater pearl necklace in the world.
8) The Single-Strand Cowdray Pearl Necklace made up of 38 graduated natural grey pearls that sold for US$ 3,353,700 is the 8th most expensive pearl necklace in the world; the 4th most expensive single-strand natural pearl necklace in the world; and the most expensive natural grey pearl necklace in the world.
9) Double-strand natural pearl necklace by Cartier of unknown historical provenance made up of 88 natural pearls that sold for US$ 3,100,000 at Christie’s Geneva in November 2004, is the 9th most expensive pearl necklace in the world and the 4th most expensive double-strand natural pearl necklace in the world.
10) The most expensive natural pearl parure in the world is the Gulf pearl parure designed by Harry Winston that sold for US$ 4,100,000 at Christie’s Geneva in Nov 2006.
11) The most expensive special natural pearl setting in the world is the Pearl Carpet of Baroda made up of 1.5-2.0 million natural seed pearls that sold for US$ 5,500,000 at Sotheby’s Arts of the Islamic World Auction, Doha, Qatar, in March 2009.
12) The most expensive natural, drop-shaped pearl and diamond ear-pendants that once belonged to popular Hollywood actress Gina Lollobrigida, and sold for US$ 2,391,322 at Sotheby’s Geneva, May 2013, is the most expensive drop-shaped pearl and diamond ear-pendants in the world.
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