Sotheby's in Hong Kong will auction the stunning Fancy Vivid Blue mixed-cut rectangular diamond. The auction will be held at a special one-bid event on October 5.
The gemstone is set in a ring with a pink diamond bezel set ring and side stones of trapezoidal cut white diamonds. The pre-sale estimate is between $26 million and $37 million. But the high estimate translates to $3.3 million per carat.
Infinite Blue can trace its origins to Petra Diamonds' iconic Cullinan mine in South Africa. The mine which has produced more than 800 stones weighing over 100 carats. It is known as the most important source of blue diamonds in the world.
Blue diamonds of the size and quality of Infinite Blue are extremely rare. It is believed that only six examples weighing over 10 carats have ever come to auction.
In April 2022, the 15.10-carat “De Beers Blue” came within a whisker of setting a new world record. That makes it the most expensive intense blue diamond ever sold at auction. The auction price of $57.47 million ($3.8 million per carat) at Sotheby's in Hong Kong falls just short of the $57.54 million ($3.9 million per carat) achieved by the 14.62-carat “Oppenheimer Blue” at Christie's in Geneva in 2016.
In 2015, “The Blue Moon of Josephine”, a flawless 12.03-carat blue diamond, sold for $48.5 million. That's $4 million per carat, at Sotheby's in Geneva. Earlier this year, the “Bulgari Laguna Blu”, a fancy vivid blue diamond of 11.16 carats, fetched $25.2 million ($2.3 million per carat), also at Sotheby's Geneva.
A Gemological Institute of America monograph described the quality and rarity of Infinite Blue. The GIA wrote: “To say that Infinite Blue is special cannot be overstated. The chances of finding a blue diamond are of the utmost rarity. This glorious and remarkable diamond is an example of what can happen when nature leads the way and humanity embraces the earth's treasures - producing a brilliant diamond with an intense rendering of light. Infinite Blue will continue to impress gem connoisseurs and diamond enthusiasts alike. In the world of gemstones, blue diamonds steal the show.”.
Blue diamonds are one of the rarest colours of all diamonds. A wonderful blessing of nature. A blue diamond owes its color to the accidental presence of boron within the diamond's carbon structure.
Infinite Blue is classified as a Type IIb diamond, a quality level that comprises less than 0.5% of all diamonds.
Scientists believe that blue diamonds form about 400 miles below the surface. That's four times deeper than the 99% of about all other diamonds.
Source: instoremag.com
