MY WORKING LIFE
Sotheby’s jewellery auctioneer David Bennett treasures relationships with people more than precious stones.
It’s a privilege to earn the trust of people and help them to manage their collections – jewellery is an extremely personal thing
David Bennett, head of Sotheby’s international jewellery division, reveals the highs of the hammer
What got you interested in auctioneering?
I took a degree in Philosophy and initially wanted to go into film after university. But my father – who was slightly old-fashioned – thought that meant Hollywood to which he was very opposed. So he cunningly introduced me to a friend of his who was a director at Sotheby’s. He convinced me to join a one-year training programme. I knew absolutely nothing about jewellery. But he made it sound rather glamorous, he told me how interesting it could be, that I would travel, and that there were sales in Switzerland. So I decided to take it… and that’s where it all began: As a trainee cataloguer.
What exactly do you do?
Apart from general management responsibilities as head of the jewellery division, one of the most wonderful things about my job is that it’s like a treasure hunt – you never know what’s around the corner. I spend quite a lot of my time meeting clients and collectors, discussing their jewellery collections, and throughout the year we are preparing auctions in Geneva, New York, Hong Kong and London. It’s a privilege to earn the trust of people and help them to manage their collections – jewellery is an extremely personal thing, often intimately connected with important moments in people’s lives, and so each collection and each relationship is different. I must say I’ve had the opportunity to examine some of the most important jewels and gemstones in the world.
What are the qualities an auctioneer should have?
Auctioneering is a little like theatre. It’s important to know how to manage the energy in the room, especially as an auction can last for several hours. There will be moments of excitement – I try to spread those through the sale.
The most moving moment in your career?
I will never forget going to Paris in 1986, to examine the jewels of the Duchess of Windsor, which were in a vault deep in the Banque de France. At the time, everyone knew about the story of the Windsors – the man who gave up the throne of Great Britain to be with the woman he loved. We knew there would be exquisite pieces commissioned from the greatest jewellery houses such as Cartier and Van Cleef & Arpels. What we didn’t know was that on many of the pieces we would find tiny secret inscriptions, in facsimile of the hand of both the Duke and the Duchess, with intimate and moving messages of love. What we knew would be an exceptional collection of jewels had just taken on a whole new dimension. Suddenly these two people and their incredible story came to life. It became, arguably, the jewel auction of the century, achieving some five times the total of the presale estimates.
Tell us about the Graff Pink and how it went on to become an auction record.
The Graff Pink was one of the most desirable diamonds I’ve seen in my career and a stone I had been following for many years. It’s difficult to exaggerate the rarity of this top-quality pink diamond weighing almost 25 carats. Once they exceed 20 carats and are of outstanding colour, they pass into the ranks of the world’s greatest gems. It was very exciting to set a new world record with the Graff Pink in 2010, and we were thrilled to break that record in April this year, with the Pink Star, which weighs almost 60 carats and sold for over $70 million (Dh257 million).
What’s the most amazing piece of jewellery that you have had a chance to see at Sotheby’s?
There are so many! It was a very special experience indeed to be entrusted with the Beau Sancy diamond, an exceptional stone, which over four centuries had belonged to four European royal families. Before the sale in 2012, a lady I know who collects jewels asked me if she might have a look at it. She came in, and when I opened the box, she just burst into tears. It is an extraordinarily powerful diamond and she found it overwhelming to think that it had been worn at the coronation of Marie de Medici in 1610!
Why do you think the UAE is so popular with jewellery lovers, buyers and sellers?
Collectors in this part of the world are very knowledgeable when it comes to the finest quality gems. The region has a wonderfully rich and fascinating cultural connection with jewels and gemstones, spanning centuries, and a tradition which recognises, understands and values the very finest jewels and stones.
You are interested in astrology...
Oh yes, I’m fascinated by the connections between gemstones and the planets – connections have been known since antiquity.
Did any auction not go the way it was planned?
A long time ago, during an auction in London, we had a technical glitch at the start of the auction that meant that the sound system wasn’t working at all. So instead of having a microphone I had to bellow to make sure I could be heard at the back of the room. I had almost no voice left at all by the end of it.