Christie's Auctioning Legendary 76 Carat D-Flawless Diamond

Christie’s expects the world-famous 76.02 ct. D-IF Archduke Joseph Diamond to fetch $15 million at its Nov. 13 auction in Geneva.

While the auction house provided the $15 million figure, an official estimate will only be provided upon request.

While Christie's did not reveal the stone's current owner, it was once offered for sale by Pheonix jeweler Al Molina.

A Christie’s release calls the gem “one of rarest and most famous diamonds in the world.” The stone was discovered in the Golconda mine in India, the source of such legendary gems as the Koh-i-noor, the Hope, and the Regent. According to the auction house, “Golconda diamonds have a special whiteness often described as soft, watery, and pure, so that light appears to pass through the stone completely unimpeded.” The Archduke Joseph is the largest and most perfect Golconda stone to ever appear at auction.

The stone received its name from one of its owners, Archduke Joseph August of Austria, who passed it on to his son, Archduke Joseph Francis. The son is believed to have deposited the stone in a bank where it remained through World War II, escaping the attention of the Nazis. After decades of mystery, the diamond reappeared in 1962, and was then sold again at Christie’s in 1993, where it realized $6.5 million (the company says that figure is equivalent to $10.5 million today). 

“The magic of auction sometimes brings back great gems to our salerooms more than once,” François Curiel, international head of Christie's jewelry department, said in a statement said. “In November, we have the privilege to give both new and established collectors the opportunity to own a piece of history once again.”

www.jckonline.com

Different colored diamond jewelry options

Diamonds are available in a wide variety of colors. Find out the colors and background information here.
When you think of diamonds, you think of those gorgeous colorless stones adorned by most engaged and married women, right? But I bet you didn’t know that diamonds are available in almost any color, from blue to red, and white to almost black.


Colored diamonds are much rarer than the colorless versions. It is estimated that there is one colored diamond for every 10,000 colorless (or near colorless) diamonds. The reason why some diamonds are colored is quite simple. A colored diamond is colored as such because of the light refracting from substances contained within the diamond itself.
Below I have outlined the colors of diamonds, and some background information that I hope you will find interesting.

Different colored diamond jewelry options

Brown:
The most common color of diamonds. Romans adorned rings with them around 1AD to 3AD. Modern connoisseurs were not impressed with them, so they were slated for industrial use. In the 1980’s, they regained popularity when Australian marketers promoted these diamonds as “champagne” and “cognac” diamonds.

Red:
There was an auction of a red diamond in 1987. It has been said that an agent for the Sultan of Brunei purchased it for the amount of $1 million dollars. This one particular sale has heightened the interest in colored diamonds.
Yellow:
After brown, yellow is the most common diamond color. These stones are found in abundance in Africa, where they are known as Cape stones. “Canary” diamonds, which have the deepest and most intense color of any of the yellow diamonds, is the rarest of the yellow diamonds.
Blue:
Blue diamonds, which can also be grayish in appearance, are incredibly rare. They have been found in many areas of the world including India, South Africa, Brazil, Indonesia, and Australia. The most famous blue diamond is the Hope diamond, which has a reputation to bring bad luck to whomever owns it.

Black:
Typically found in Brazil, they can also be found in India and Africa. Many times black diamonds are artificially produced. When a low-clarity faceted diamond is irradiated, it turns a blue or green color, which appears to be black.

Green:
Although green diamonds are commonly found, the color is most always lost when the stone is faceted. The very thin surface layer of the green diamond, which produces its color, is shaved of when it is faceted. The famous green diamond, Dresden Green, is a 41-carat diamond that is well known for its apple-green coloration throughout the stone. It has been thought that it is of Indian origin, but many experts feel that it is from Brazil.

Pink, Red and Purple: Pink, red and purple diamonds are all closely related. The Argyle mine, in Western Australia, has become famous since the 1980’s for producing some of the highest quality of pink and red diamonds. Within just the last few years, it has been quoted that this mine received $1.6 million dollars for a top-grade pink diamond that weighed in at just under a carat. Violet and orange diamonds have also been found in the Argyle mine. These colors were not known to exist until found in Australia.

http://sleekgossip.com/

50-CARAT DIAMOND SELLS FOR “RIDICULOUSLY LOW” PRICE AT TORONTO AUCTION

A 50-carat diamond auctioned in Toronto on Sunday fetched only $2.7 million, a fraction of its estimated value of $10 million, the Toronto Star reports.

Kashif Khan, managing director of Ritchies Auctioneers, called the price “ridiculously low.” Nevertheless, he noted, the $2.7 million figure ($3 million including commission) was still the highest price ever fetched by a diamond at a Canadian auction.

Comparatively little is known about the diamond itself, which was put up for sale by its Belgian owner.

-The Israeli Diamond Industry