Wealthy consumers are turning to jewelry as an investment, especially colored gemstones

When the gavel came down in December, Christie’s had set a record that created a buzz in the auction world.

A Tiffany & Co. necklace adorned with a sparkling blue Paraiba tourmaline gem and diamonds sold for more than $4.2 million, 10 times its low estimate. A matching pair of earrings hit the block next, and it too sold for 10 times its estimate.

“I think that was really a marker for how far private clients are willing to go for these exceptional goods,” said Jacqueline DiSante, vice president and head of sales of Christie’s New York jewelry division.

Amid economic and geopolitical uncertainty, a certain class of consumers are turning toward an unlikely asset class — jewelry. The trend comes as investors increasingly flock to tangible assets. For ultrarich consumers, colored gemstones such as rubies, sapphires and emeralds are especially popular right now.

“Whenever you have macroeconomic volatility … the appeal of hard asset investing goes up,” said Thorne Perkin, president of investment management firm Papamarkou Wellner Perkin. “Tangible assets, they tend to retain their value or even increase when inflation rises.”