Last week in Geneva, Christie’s sold a 30.6-carat carved cabochon emerald, known as the Shah Jahan, for $830,000 — eightfold its estimate. London auction house Phillips sold Tiffany’s 42.7-carat Vanderbilt Kashmir sapphire for $3.6 million, threefold its estimate. And Sotheby’s broke records with the successful auction of Napoleon’s diamond brooch, which sold for $4.4 million, or about 29 times its estimate.

Luxury auctions are thriving. Christie’s reports luxury sales are up 29% year-on-year. Consolidated luxury sales at Sotheby’s have grown from $822 million in 2019 (accounting for 14% of total sales) to $2.2 billion last year (now 37% of total sales).

Tiffany’s 42.7-carat Vanderbilt Kashmir sapphire. Photo: Courtesy of Phillips

Auction houses are benefiting from an effort to bring i

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