The Giant Pink Diamond "Fortune Pink" Fetches $28.8 Million
"Fortune Pink", a very rare giant pink diamond, was sold at auction in Geneva for more than 28.8 million dollars to a private Asian collector, according to AFP.
Weighting 18.18 carats, the gem is the largest pear-shaped "fancy vivid pink" diamond ever sold under the hammer, Christie's auction house said.
The exquisite diamond was mounted on a ring, flanked on both sides by a large white diamond. It weighs 18.18 carats, a number considered lucky in Asia where it means "sure prosperity", according to Christie.
Fortune Pink Diamond Failed To Reach High Estimate
The sale, which lasted for just four minutes, started at 17.6 million dollars and was a three-way battle between telephone bidders, with the winner eventually claiming the gem by upping the bid by half a million.
"The buyer is happy. It's a dream come true," the Christie's employee who took the winning bid over the phone told AFP while preserving the anonymity of the new owner.
"Very aptly it was purchased by an Asian private customer," Rahul Kadakia, Christie’s international head of jewelry, told reporters after conducting the sale.
"It’s a very select group of customers who are buying at this level. I’m very happy that it’s gone to a new family who will enjoy it, who will wear it, and I hope it brings them good fortune," he added.
Brand director for Hong Kong’s Ronald Abram, Jonathan Abram, told Rapaport News that the variance in return between the Fortune Pink and the recently auctioned Williamson Pink Star was surprising.
"A result of $US1.6 million per carat is surprising and not indicative of the market price for a stone of this caliber," he said.
"To put it into perspective, it’s less than a third of the price of the Williamson Pink Star. In two consecutive auctions, a seemingly similar item should not have this degree of variance. I don’t think the location was a factor. In this case, it could be that the stone was sold too close to the Williamson Pink Star. The buyer got a real bargain."
The Fortune Pink, mined in Brazil, had been estimated to fetch between $25 million and $35 million.
The giant pink diamond was exhibited in Geneva, then in New York, Shanghai (China), Taiwan, and Singapore in October, before returning to Switzerland.
Other Rare Diamonds Sold At Auction
Pink diamonds are very rare and less than 10% of them weigh more than a fifth of a carat. They are the most requested on the world market.
On Friday, the Williamson Pink Star, an 11.15-carat pink diamond, sold for 453.2 million Hong Kong dollars (more than $57 million), setting a record auction price per carat for a diamond or a gem.
It is also the second-highest price ever paid at an auction for a gem.
The world record for a pink diamond was set in 2017 when a stone called the "CTF Pink Star" was sold in Hong Kong for $71.2 million (€70.8 million).
Tuesday's sale of 71 lots of jewelry brought in nearly 56.6 million Swiss francs (over $57 million ). Five other lots of diamonds cost over one million Swiss francs.
Sotheby's Luxury Week in Geneva is also underway. One of eight rare blue diamonds from the De Beers Exceptional Blue Collection, weighing 5.53 carats and estimated at between 11 and 15 million Swiss francs, will be presented there on Wednesday.
Photo Credit: Screenshot "Fortune Pink" Diamond Youtube Christie's
