Bonhams London sale shows strong demand for vintage pearls and signed jewels
A David Morris pearl necklace led Bonhams’ London sale, but a natural pearl strand nearly matched it, showing buyers still pay up for pearls and signed names.
Bonhams’ Fine Jewellery sale in London brought £40,960 for a David Morris cultured pearl and diamond necklace on New Bond Street, while a natural pearl necklace with a diamond clasp fetched £39,680. Those results put pearls at the center of a 273-lot auction that Bonhams said was 87% sold by lot and 98% by value.
The top lot, from a private single-owner collection, was a David Morris design with three rows of cultured pearls, diamond-set rondelle spacers, and pavé-set single-cut diamond flowers and interlocking hoops. It sold above its £25,000 to £35,000 estimate. The natural pearl necklace, estimated at just £7,000 to £10,000, landed far higher and came close to the David Morris result, a gap that matters for buyers tracking where the pearl market still looks underpriced.
The strength did not stop at pearls. Bonhams said every one of the top 10 pieces beat its high estimate, and the sale drew solid bidding for signed and period jewels as well as coloured stones. A Bulgari Monete Tubogas necklace made £35,840, a diamond fringe necklace brought £38,400, a diamond, ruby and emerald-set bracelet sold for £24,320, and a sapphire and diamond cluster ring reached £25,600. Pieces by Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels and Tiffany & Co. also found buyers, reinforcing the premium for recognizable names over anonymous stock.
Jennifer Tonkin, Bonhams’ head of jewellery in the UK, said natural pearls, coloured gemstones, signed and period jewellery all performed strongly, and pointed to demand for high-jewellery designs by heritage brands. That pattern is not new. A March 25 Bonhams London fine-jewelry sale had already posted 87% sold by lot and 98% by value, with provenance, signed jewels and fine natural pearls driving demand. In December, Bonhams’ London Jewels sale saw similar energy around historically notable collections, including pieces linked to Lady Glenconner and Nancy Astor. For vintage buyers, the message is clearer now: pearls with documented quality, and jewels with a name, still command the deepest competition.
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