Pull out the auction paddles because on November 13, Christie’s Geneva will present "The Pink Legacy", the largest and finest fancy vivid pink diamond ever offered at auction by the company.
Set to fetch between $30 to 50 million, the star of this year's "Magnificent Jewels" auction is a spectacular 18.96-carat rectangular diamond that traces its history back to the famed Oppenheimer family, a South African diamond dynasty.
Part of the stone's allure is its coveted "Fancy Vivid" grading, the highest diamond color grading awarded by the Gemological Institute of America. And fancy vivid pink diamonds over 10 carats are virtually unheard of—in over 250 years of auction history at Christie’s, only four such stones have ever appeared for sale.
"You may see this color in a pink diamond of less than one carat. But this is almost 19 carats and it’s as pink as can be. It’s unbelievable," explained Rahul Kadakia, Christie's international head of jewelry.
According to the auction house, demand for high-quality pink diamonds is booming. The nearest such record was reached in the international diamond market in November 2017 when Christie’s Hong Kong sold "The Pink Promise" an oval-shaped fancy vivid pink diamond of just under fifteen carats for $32,480,500 ($2,175,519 per carat), which remains the world auction record price per carat for any pink diamond.
Ahead of the sale, the diamond and other highlights from the Magnificent Jewels auction will travel to Hong Kong, London, and New York, before returning to the Geneva saleroom at the Four Seasons Hotel des Bergues.
