Forty-five pieces of Christina Onassis’s jewelry were auctioned yesterday at Christie’s in London.  The vintage jewels auction took place almost 20 years after Christina Onassis died of a heart attack at age 37.

The highlight of Christie Jewels: The London Sale was a pear-shaped, 38-carat diamond pendant necklace owned by Ms. Onassis.  It was estimated to sell for between £1,800,000 - £2,200,000 ($3,513,000 - $4,294,000) but ended up selling for almost double £3,625,250 ($7,083,739).  As you can see from the photos below, it’s an exquisite and incredibly impressive piece.

Another key piece of Christina’s collection was a sapphire and diamond necklace by Harry Winston estimated to sell for between £120,000- 150,000 ($234,000 - $293,000) and which actually sold for £337,250 ($658,987).   

 But I think my favorite piece of Christina’s jewels was a ruby and diamond necklace by Van Cleef and Arpels which was estimated to sell for £30,000 - £40,000 ($58,500 - $78,000) and actually sold for a mere £97,250 ($190,902).

The remainder of Christina’s collection included dozens of rings, bracelets, watches, necklaces, and a jade-coloured bowenite Buddha by Peter Carl Faberge (of Faberge egg fame) which had a pre-auction estimate of £250,000 - £350,000 ($487,000 -  $681,000).

Christie’s expected the sale of Christina’s jewels to bring a total of £7.9M ($15.6M), but the final total was £6.8M ($13.3M). 

Though I’m always glad to have a chance to get a closer look at such spectacular jewels, auctions like these always make me sad.  According to The Daily News, Athina Roussel, Christina’s daughter, sold the jewelry because it is “irrelevant to her lifestyle.”  I have to say that it seems like such a shame.