Onassis jewels sell for $13.3 million at auction

A Christie's employee holds a pear-shaped 38 carat D colour potentially flawless diamond fitted on a necklace that belongs to the collection of Christina Onassis during a preview in Geneva May 9, 2008. The necklace will be the highlight of the 230 items to be sold during an auction sale in London June 11. It is expected to reach between $ 3,600,000 and $ 4,400,000.

LONDON (Reuters) - Jewellery belonging to Christina Onassis, daughter of Greek shipping tycoon Aristotle Onassis who struggled to find happiness despite her family's wealth, fetched 6.8 million pounds ($13.3 million) at auction on Wednesday.

All 44 pieces from her collection on offer at Christie's were sold, including a 38-carat D color potentially flawless diamond once part of a necklace which went under the hammer for 3.6 million pounds, roughly double its pre-sale estimate.

Christie's London jewellery sale totaled more than 15 million pounds overall, the highest amount ever for a jewellery auction in Britain, the auctioneer said. The previous record was 12 million pounds set in June, 1990.

Another important piece in the Onassis collection was a rare bowenite Buddha by Carl Faberge which sold for 1.27 million pounds compared with an estimate of 250-350,000 pounds.

Christina Onassis, after whom Aristotle's famous luxury yacht was named, saw her father, brother and mother die in a period of just 24 months. She died aged 37 after a history of drug abuse, weight problems and four failed marriages.

She had a daughter, Athina, who was three years old when her mother passed away.

(Reporting by Mike Collett-White, editing by Paul Casciato)