A jadeite bead necklace became the most valuable lot auctioned in Asia this spring after fetching HK$200.2 million (US$25.5 million) at Christie’s Hong Kong.
Offered during the auction house’s Luxury Week, the necklace – titled The Ethereal Jadeite – is composed of 61 highly translucent jadeite beads measuring approximately 8.8 to 13.7 mm in diameter. It carried a presale estimate of HK$110 million.
Bidding opened at HK$90 million on 26 May and drew around 18 bids before the hammer fell at HK$170 million. The winning bidder was a woman in the saleroom holding paddle number 893.
The result led Christie’s Magnificent Jewels sale, which totalled HK$581 million (US$74.2 million) with fees. Of the 121 lots offered, 109 sold, bringing the sell-through rate to 90%, while the hammer total came in at 129% of the presale estimate.
Auctioneer Rahul Kadakia (Christie’s President Asia Pacific) brought the hammer down at HK$170 million
Lot 1923 | The Ethereal Jadeite Necklace | The most expensive lot sold in Asia in Spring 2026
Sixty-one jadeite beads measuring approximately 13.7 to 8.8 mm, jadeite cabochon measuring approximately 11.7 x 15.0 x 7.1 mm, round yellow diamonds, gold
HK Jade & Stone Lab, 2026, report no. FC 0085(1-6): Burma (Myanmar), natural colour Fei Cui (Jadeite Jade), without resin
Length: approximately 74.1 cm
Estimate: HK$110,000,000 – 200,000,000
Hammer Price: HK$170,000,000
Sold: HK$200,200,000
“Jade” is often used as a single term, but it actually refers to two different minerals: nephrite and jadeite. Nephrite is more opaque and has long been used in traditional Chinese art for carvings, ornaments, and ritual objects. Jadeite, by contrast, is more translucent and can be polished to a bright lustre, making it especially prized in jewellery.
Jadeite arrived in China from Burma in the late 18th century. By the early 19th century, it had become one of the Qing court’s most fashionable stones, its popularity often linked to Empress Dowager Cixi’s celebrated fondness for jadeite. Officials and noblemen collected it avidly, both to wear and to present as gifts, helping to drive its value sharply higher.
Today, fine jadeite remains one of the most coveted gemstones in Asia. With Burmese supply limited and demand from Chinese buyers still strong, it is considered one of the top gemstones in the Eastern market, alongside coloured diamonds, rubies, sapphires, and emeralds. The finest examples are prized for their vivid colour, translucency, and so-called “water content” – the luminous, almost liquid glow that gives jadeite much of its appeal.
The Ethereal Jadeite Necklace
The Hutton-Mdivani jadeite necklace by Cartier | Sold: HK$214,040,000, Sotheby’s Hong Kong, 2014 (Auction record for any jadeite jewellery)
Jadeite comes in many shades, including lavender, yellow, red, brown, black, and even colourless varieties, but green is the most prized. The best examples have a vivid, highly saturated green – often described by specialists as “strict” green – with a medium to medium-dark tone, close to that of a fine emerald.
In the jadeite market, bead size is generally divided into two categories: small beads, which usually measure 8 to 11 mm in diameter, and large beads, which range from 12 to 17 mm, or even more.
Bead necklaces are among the most valuable forms of jadeite jewellery. Achieving a near-identical run of beads in size, colour, and translucency often requires cutters to sacrifice far more high-quality rough than they would for other jewels; any cracks, inclusions, or uneven tones become immediately obvious once the beads are strung together.
In 2014, the Cartier Hutton-Mdivani jadeite necklace sold for HK$214 million at Sotheby’s Hong Kong, setting an auction record for jadeite jewellery. Formerly in the collections of socialites Barbara Hutton, Louise Van Alen, and Princess Nina Mdivani, the necklace is composed of 27 jadeite beads measuring approximately 15.4 to 19.2 mm in diameter.
Other Lots that Sold Above HK$10 million
Lot 1922 | A coloured diamond and diamond brooch
Fancy purplish red oval brilliant-cut diamond of 1.78 carats, SI2 clarity, Type Ia, round diamonds
Size: 3.9 cm
Estimate: HK$20,000,000 – 30,000,000
Hammer Price: HK$32,000,000
Sold: HK$39,540,000
Lot 1921 | A rare colored diamond and diamond ‘Trombino’ ring, by Bulgari
Fancy vivid pink cut-cornered rectangular step-cut diamond of 3.17 carats, VS1 clarity, potential Type IIa, round and baguette-cut diamonds, platinum
Circa 1970
Estimate: HK$16,000,000 – 25,000,000
Hammer Price: HK$20,500,000
Sold: HK$25,510,000
Lot 1916 | A rare ruby and diamond ring
Oval brilliant-cut Burma ‘pigeon blood red’ ruby of 5.07 carats, pear brilliant-cut diamonds of 2.02, 2.00, 1.84, 1.70 carat, D colour, Flawless to Internally Flawless, round diamonds, gold, and platinum
Estimate: HK$9,600,000 – 15,000,000
Hammer Price: HK$14,500,000
Sold: HK$18,190,000
Lot 1920 | A sapphire and diamond ring
Roundish brilliant-cut Kashmir sapphire of 13.95 carats, baguette-cut diamonds, platinum and gold, ring mount signed Bvlgari
Estimate: HK$12,800,000 – 18,000,000
Hammer Price: HK$13,500,000
Sold: HK$16,970,000
Lot 1865 | Exquisite jadeite bead, ruby, and diamond necklace
Sixty-eight Burma jadeite beads measuring approximately 11.0 to 9.2 mm, sugarloaf ruby of 4.53 carats, pear-shaped diamonds and diamond beads, gold
Estimate: HK$12,000,000 – 18,000,000
Hammer Price: HK$11,000,000
Sold: HK$13,920,000
Lot 1879 | Art Deco multi-gem ‘Tutti Frutti’ bracelet, by Cartier
Carved emeralds, rubies and onyx, emerald and onyx beads, single and old-cut diamonds, platinum, 1928, signed Cartier, numbered, red Cartier case
Length: approximately 18.5 cm
Estimate: HK$5,000,000 – 8,000,000
Hammer Price: HK$9,500,000
Sold: HK$12,065,000
Lot 1880 | A multi-gem pendent necklace/brooches, by Van Cleef & Arpels
Carved emeralds, ruby beads and buff top rubies, round and single-cut diamonds, onyx beads
Size: necklace approximately 37.8 cm inner circumference; detachable pendent brooches approximately 6.4 and 4.2 cm
Estimate: HK$8,800,000 – 12,000,000
Hammer Price: HK$9,500,000
Sold: HK$12,065,000
Lot 1872 | A natural pearl and diamond necklace
Sixteen button-shaped white and grey natural pearls, the largest pearl measuring approximately 18.2 – 18.5 x 14.2 mm, kite-shaped diamonds, gold
Length: necklace approximately 41.4 cm; pendant 4.3 cm
Estimate: HK$6,800,000 – 8,500,000
Hammer Price: HK$9,000,000
Sold: HK$11,430,000
Lot 1892 | An exceptional unmounted diamond
Emerald-cut diamond of 18.88 carats, D colour, Flawless clarity, excellent polish and symmetry, Type IIa
Estimate: HK$8,700,000 – 12,000,000
Hammer Price: HK$9,000,000
Sold: HK$11,430,000
Lot 1919 | A sapphire and diamond ring, by Van Cleef & Arpels
Oval cabochon Kashmir sapphire of 15.17 carats, round diamonds, gold (French mark)
Estimate: HK$8,000,000 – 12,000,000
Hammer Price: HK$8,500,000
Sold: HK$10,795,000
Lot 1878 | Tasaki paraíba tourmaline and diamond ring
Pear-shaped Brazil paraíba tourmaline of 6.94 carats, square and round diamonds, platinum
Estimate: HK$1,200,000 – 1,800,000
Hammer Price: HK$8,100,000
Sold: HK$10,287,000
Auction Details:
Auction House: Christie’s Hong Kong
Sale: Magnificent Jewels
Date: 26 May 2026
Number of Lots: 121
Sold: 109
Unsold: 12
Sale Rate: 90%
Sale Total: HK$581,499,900