"Famous Diamonds": The Most Expensive Diamond Ever Sold at an Auction
Today's star in our "Famous Diamonds" series is a world-renowned pink diamond. Known as the "Pink Star", it's the most expensive diamond ever sold at an auction.
This diamond has written a new page of history! The "Pink Star" diamond was sold, on 4 April 2017, for a total of 71,2 million dollars, at a Sotheby’s auction in Hong Kong.
The precious stone is an internally flawless pink 59.6–carat diamond. In fact, it is the largest internally flawless or flawless fancy vivid pink diamond that the Gemological Institute of America has ever graded.
The diamond has been classified in the "Type IIa" category. The precious gems in this category - which make up only 2% of all diamonds - are considered the purest in the world, often with extraordinary optical transparency.
The oval-shaped diamond is mounted on a ring and measures 1.06 inches by 0.81 inches. All the aspects regarding this amazing jewel are purely exquisite. It is a true masterpiece!
Always precious, always sensational, pink diamonds have constantly aroused the interest of collectors. They are the most expensive.
Brief History of the "Pink Star"
This diamond has written a new page of history! The "Pink Star" diamond was sold, on 4 April 2017, for a total of 71,2 million dollars, at a Sotheby’s auction in Hong Kong.
The precious stone is an internally flawless pink 59.6–carat diamond. In fact, it is the largest internally flawless or flawless fancy vivid pink diamond that the Gemological Institute of America has ever graded.
The diamond has been classified in the "Type IIa" category. The precious gems in this category - which make up only 2% of all diamonds - are considered the purest in the world, often with extraordinary optical transparency.
The oval-shaped diamond is mounted on a ring and measures 1.06 inches by 0.81 inches. All the aspects regarding this amazing jewel are purely exquisite. It is a true masterpiece!
Always precious, always sensational, pink diamonds have constantly aroused the interest of collectors. They are the most expensive.
Brief History of the "Pink Star"
The "Pink Star" diamond was mined in 1999 in Africa, by the "De Beers" international corporation, and, according to specialists, it far surpasses in size and color intensity any other pink diamond ever brought to the surface so far. In its rough state, the famous diamond had 132.5 carats.
The huge rough diamond was then bought by Steinmetz Diamonds. It took almost two years to cut and polish the precious gemstone. After the eight master polishers finished their artwork, "Pink Star" lost almost two-thirds of its initial weight.
The "Pink Star" was polished into a "Mixed Oval Brilliant", a combination between a brilliant and an oval, with a step-cut crown and a brilliant-cut pavilion. This approach gives you the impression that there is a star shape inside the stone.
The diamond was then sold through a private transaction in 2007 at a price that was not disclosed.
At the end of 2013, the "Pink Star" was sold for 83.01 million dollars at Christie's auction house in Geneva, Switzerland, but the sale did not go ahead due to default by the anonymous buyer.
Then, at the 4 April 2017 auction, the precious pink diamond was bought by "Chow Tai Fook Enterprises", a Hong Kong conglomerate that has a chain of jewelry stores.
The astonishing gemstone was beautifully described by Sotheby's auctioneer David Bennett. He said that the pink diamond is "a truly amazing royal stone, fit for any royal collection, fit for any museum collection".
In his view, the extraordinary size of this 59.60-carat diamond, paired with its richness of color, surpasses any known pink diamond record in history.
"Its exceptional richness of color, the bright pink hue recognized by the American Institute of Gemology, in combination with its extraordinary size, are characteristics that exceed all known pink diamonds, whether they are in royal, or private collections. There is no stone of that size and color known, no other stone," said David Bennett.
