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Annenberg Diamond to lead Christie's fall sale

July 24, 2009
The 32.01-carat,flawless, D-color Annenberg Diamond will be on the auction block at Christie's Jewels: The New York Sale on Oct. 21. Photo courtesy of Christie's Images Ltd.

New York--The Annenberg Diamond, a 32.01-carat, emerald-cut, flawless, D-color stone boasting the impressive provenance synonymous with the Annenberg name, will be the highlight of Christie's Jewels: The New York Sale on Oct. 21.

Valued between $3 million-$5 million, the Annenberg Diamond is mounted in a ring designed by renowned Manhattan jeweler David Webb, where it's flanked by two pear-shaped diamonds weighing 1.50 and 1.61 carats.

Francois Curiel, chairman of Christie's Europe and international head of jewels, said in a media release that the Annenberg Diamond combines the best of the Four C's.

"[The diamond has] top color, perfect clarity, ideal cut and excellent weight. And if you add to this the impeccable provenance of the Annenberg name, you have one of the finest gems to appear on the market for many years," Curiel said.

The Annenberg Diamond belonged to the late Leonore "Lee" Annenberg, a passionate art collector and philanthropist who, along with her husband, The Honorable Walter H. Annenberg, entrusted billions of dollars to institutions devoted to education and the arts.

Lee Annenberg was the former U.S. chief of protocol during the Reagan administration and served as chairwoman and president of the Annenberg Foundation.

The late Ambassador Annenberg was a prominent newspaper publisher, broadcaster, diplomat and philanthropist. He was a champion of public television and acquired many awards during his professional career, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Ronald Reagan and the Linus Pauling Medal for Humanitarianism. Under President Richard Nixon, he was appointed ambassador to the Court of St. James and was later made an honorary knight of the Order of the British Empire (KBE).

Over the years, the Annenberg Foundation has donated an estimated $4.2 billion to cultural, educational and medical institutions. During their marriage, Ambassador Annenberg established the Annenberg Schools of Communication at the University of Pennsylvania and the University of Southern California, and gave generously to a number of schools, libraries, theaters, hospitals and museums across the United States. In 1993, the Foundation donated $500 million to public education through the Annenberg Challenge for School Reform, one of the largest gifts in philanthropic history. In 2002, upon the death of Ambassador Annenberg, the couple's collection of French Impressionist art--valued at approximately $1 billion--was donated to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, where both Mr. and Mrs. Annenberg served as trustees.

Prior to the October sale, Christie's has arranged a preview tour of the Annenberg Diamond to key collecting centers, including Geneva, London, Hong Kong, Los Angeles and New York.
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