What a R500 million pink diamond from South Africa looks like
Sotheby’s auction house says it has sold a rare pear-shaped vivid pink diamond for a record $31.5 million (R499 million) at an auction in Geneva, Switzerland.
The 15.38-carat diamond was found in South Africa in 2011 and was priced at $2,052,094 per carat.
The current world auction record for any Pink Diamond is The Graff Pink 24.78-carat Emerald – cut Fancy Intense Pink Diamond, which sold for $46,158,674 in 2010.
According to Sotheby’s the Fancy Vivid Pink diamond is supremely rare. “In addition to receiving the highest possible colour grading for a pink diamond from the Gemological Institute of America (GIA), the “Unique Pink” has been found to be Type IIa, displaying “exceedingly pure structure”.
“The stone’s exquisite pear shape and brilliant cut accentuate its exceptional saturation, placing it in a rarefied category even among the world’s most beautiful diamonds.
The diamond was sold to an Asian private collector who had bid by telephone.
David Bennett of Sotheby’s International Jewellery Division, said: “It is difficult to imagine a diamond that better illustrates the term Vivid Pink than this outstanding stone.
“The colour is simply astonishing and, for its size, it is in my experience truly unique. We set out to curate a sale that would speak to today’s collectors and the response has been overwhelming – confirmation, if ever it were needed, that when you have the right material, demand is as deep as it’s ever been.”
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