Rare necklace sells for $1.4 million

Transcript

00:00Under the hammer at the Emirates Towers were more than 150 rare jewellery pieces.

00:12The Christie's auction featured high quality gems by some top international jewellery designers.

00:18This season's sale focused on pearls, which have played a vital role in the history of

00:23the UAE.

00:24Among them a natural pearl and diamond necklace that went for over $1.7 million.

00:30The main attraction at the sale was a 19th century antique necklace given to the late

00:35Egyptian singer Umm Kulthum.

00:38It's made up of 1,800 pearls and was a gift from Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan.

00:44A tense volley took place at the million dollar mark between two buyers before it finally

00:49went for $1.4 million.

00:52Christie's say they raised just over $20 million from the sale.

00:56The auctioneers have seen a 39% rise in auction sales since they began operations in the Emirates

01:02in 2005.

01:03Ashraf Helmi, Gulf News.