“The Rock” is ready to break a record. The largest white diamond ever to be auctioned, estimated at between $20 million and $30 million, will go under the hammer on Wednesday in Geneva with hopes of sparking sparks.
With 228.31 carats, “The Rock” is impressive in terms of size, but not only.
• Read also: “The Rock” at auction
“This is a truly exceptional pear-shaped diamond,” Max Fawcett, head of the jewelry department at Christie’s in Geneva, told AFP.
“It is perfectly symmetrical. It is estimated between 20 and 30 million dollars, and I expect an explosion of bidding,” said Mr. Fawcett.
The price of the gemstone, whose owner is from North America but who remains anonymous, could reach record highs.
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According to the expert, there is only a “handful” of diamonds of this ilk. The latest record for a similar white diamond (163.41 carats) brought the stone to $33.7 million (price including buyer’s premium) – or $206,236 per carat, at a sale in November 2017 in Geneva. According to Christies, “this is a record for all auction houses combined”.
“The Rock”, whose height exceeds that of a golf ball, was extracted from a mine in South Africa in the early 2000s.
It was then sold by Christie’s as part of an over-the-counter sale to a private collector.
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“The Rock” will not be the only star of these auctions.
Enthusiasts can also try to acquire “The Red Cross Diamond”, a cushion-shaped canary yellow diamond of 205.07 carats.
A stone whose sale should be driven by the very particular context, at a time when the war in Ukraine is once again bloodying the Old Continent.
“It is estimated between 7 and 10 million Swiss francs. I expect him to achieve fantastic results when selling. Much of the proceeds from its sale will be donated to the International Committee of the Red Cross,” Fawcett said.
The original gem was mined in 1901 at a De Beers company’s South African mine and is said to have weighed around 375 carats, according to Christie’s. As well as ranking among the largest diamonds in the world, a striking feature of the stone is its pavilion, which is naturally faceted in the shape of a Maltese cross.
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On April 10, 1918, the stone was first offered for sale at Christie’s in London by the Diamond Syndicate, to benefit the British Red Cross Society and the Order of St. of Malta).
At the time, the diamond had been sold for 10,000 pounds. It had been bought by the famous London jeweler SJ Phillips.
On November 21, 1973, it was put up for sale again at Christie’s in Geneva, for 1.8 million francs. It is now offered for the third time by Christie’s.
The seller wished to remain anonymous but released this statement: “For nearly half a century, our family has had the privilege of keeping the Red Cross Diamond. (…) At this auspicious moment in history, we honor the call that others have made before us”.
“The diamond market is incredibly robust this year. The geopolitical situation has been difficult, there are inflationary pressures and diamond prices have not been so high for seven or eight years”, explained Max Fawcett.
The Russian invasion in Ukraine has a major impact on this market.
More than 40% of diamonds are mined in Russia, including the Alrosa mine, but international markets no longer have access to Russian gems, he said.
The conflict has “significant repercussions due to this strong restriction of supply on the current market, by creating strong price increases”, indicated the expert.
And he expects the continued international sanctions on Russia to “continue to drive up prices.”
Reference-www.tvanouvelles.ca