SOUTH AFRICAN MINED DIAMOND ˇ§PINK STARˇ¨
SELLS FOR RECORD-BREAKING $71,2 MILLION |
A diamond ˇV which was mined by De Beers in South
Africa in 1999 ˇV fetched a record-breaking price of US$71,2
million in Hong Kong on 4 April 2017.
Sothebyˇ¦s set the new record for any diamond or
jewel when the 59,60-carat oval diamond ˇV which is fancy vivid
pink and internally flawless ˇV sold in Hong Kong for HK$553
million to renowned jeweller Chow Tai Fook.
The jeweller has immediately renamed the stone the CTF Pink.
According to Sothebys, not only was the price more than double
the previous record for a fancy vivid pink diamond, but it was
also a new record for any work ever sold at auction in Asia.
The Pink Star (or CTF Pink) is known as one of the worldˇ¦s Great
Natural Treasures.
It was cut by Steinmetz Diamonds over a period of nearly two
years and transformed into this spectacular gem ˇV the largest
internally flawless or flawless, fancy vivid pink diamond that
the Gemological Institute of America has ever graded. It was
unveiled in 2003 at the Monaco Grand Prix where it was modelled
by supermodel Helena Christensen.
Of all fancy coloured pink diamonds, those graded ˇ§Fancy Vividˇ¨
are the most precious and desirable, says Sothebys.
The current world auction record for a pink diamond is the Graff
Pink, a 24,78 carat diamond which sold at Sothebyˇ¦s Geneva in
November 2010 for US$46,16 million. The Pink Star is twice the
size.
It has been exhibited at several museums around the world,
including the Natural History Museum in London where it
attracted about 70 000 visitors a day. ˇV www.sapeople.com
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