Washington’s reciprocal tariff reduction is expected to help India’s gems and jewellery exporters regain lost ground in the US market, after shipments fell 44% during April-December this fiscal.
However, diamond exporters are awaiting clarity on whether shipments of the precious stone will be covered under Annexure III of the US reciprocal tariff list, which could allow zero duty.
Duties on polished diamonds and coloured gemstones had surged from 0% to 10% in April, then to 50% by August.
The key categories that have been hard hit are exports of cut and polished diamonds, which fell by 60% to $1.4 billion, studded gold jewellery by 24.54% to $1.5 billion and plain gold jewellery by 29% to $183.84 million.
Lab-grown diamond (LGD) trade is also hopeful of garnering a higher share of the US market. “The decision to reduce tariff is a timely positive for the LGD ecosystem, as the US is the largest gem and jewellery market globally,,” said Namita Kothari, founder of Akoirah by Augmont.
Justin and Hailey Bieber made a dazzling return to the Grammy Awards in 2026, stepping onto the red carpet for the first time in four years adorned in a combined 162 carats of high jewellery diamonds. The couple attended the ceremony in Los Angeles wearing standout creations by renowned jeweller Lorraine Schwartz, reaffirming diamonds’ enduring status as the ultimate red-carpet statement.
Hailey Bieber commanded attention in a strapless Alaïa gown, elevated by a striking 30-carat pear-shaped diamond pendant suspended from a sleek silver choker. She paired the necklace with statement diamond earrings totalling 20 carats and a 12-carat diamond cocktail ring, showcasing a refined balance of elegance and bold design. Her look was completed with a slicked-back updo and understated makeup, allowing the exceptional stones to remain the focal point.
Justin Bieber complemented Hailey’s brilliance with a custom Balenciaga suit, finished with a 100-carat diamond-encrusted chain necklace. The substantial carat weight and pavé-style setting delivered maximum impact, reflecting the growing trend of high-carat diamond jewellery in contemporary men’s fashion.
Beyond the glamour, the couple also wore “ICE Out” pins in solidarity with ongoing protests against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, a gesture echoed by several other artists on the night.
The 2026 Grammys marked a milestone return for the Biebers following the birth of their son, Jack. Justin received multiple nominations, including Album of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Album for Swag, as well as Best Pop Solo Performance for “Daisies.”
For DCLA, moments like these highlight not only the spectacle of celebrity jewellery, but also the importance of accurate diamond grading, carat verification, and craftsmanship at the highest level. Red-carpet appearances continue to influence global perceptions of diamond value, rarity, and desirability—making independent certification and expert assessment more relevant than ever in today’s market.
The Apollo and Artemis diamonds stand among the rarest gemstones ever discovered—extraordinary not only for their individual beauty, but for the near-impossible fact that they exist as a perfectly matched pair. When they appeared at Sotheby’s Magnificent Jewels & Noble Jewels auction in Geneva in May 2017, they instantly rewrote auction history, becoming the most expensive pair of diamond earrings ever sold.
Introduced by Sotheby’s as “the most important pair of diamond earrings ever brought to market”, the description was no exaggeration. These two fancy-coloured diamonds—one vivid blue, the other intense pink—represent a convergence of rarity, science, and artistry that may never be repeated.
A Once-in-a-Lifetime Matched Pair of Fancy-Coloured Diamonds
Matched pairs of diamonds are rare. Matched pairs of large fancy-coloured diamonds, cut to mirror one another in size, shape, and visual balance, are virtually unheard of.
The Apollo and Artemis diamonds were presented as pear-shaped earrings, deliberately contrasting in colour yet perfectly balanced in form. Although offered as separate lots, they were conceived as twins—cut with harmony in mind rather than individual dominance.
Both diamonds made their first-ever public appearance at the 2017 Geneva auction. Industry experts believe the stones were fashioned by the same master cutters, who recognised early on that the rough diamonds had the potential to yield near-perfect counterparts. At this level of diamond cutting, prioritising symmetry between two stones rather than maximising the yield of a single gem is almost unprecedented.
The Apollo Blue Diamond: A Record-Breaking Fancy Vivid Blue
The undisputed centrepiece of the pair is the Apollo Blue Diamond, a 14.54-carat Fancy Vivid Blue diamond of exceptional pedigree. Discovered at South Africa’s legendary Cullinan Mine, Apollo belongs to the rarest category of natural diamonds.
Graded Internally Flawless and classified as Type IIb, the Apollo Blue contains no nitrogen and trace amounts of boron—the element responsible for its extraordinary blue colour. According to the GIA, fewer than one percent of diamonds are Type IIb, and only a tiny fraction of those achieve a Fancy Vivid colour grade.
At auction, the Apollo Blue sold for just over USD $42 million, becoming the largest internally flawless Fancy Vivid Blue diamond ever offered publicly. Even without its counterpart, Apollo would have been a headline-making stone.
The Artemis Pink Diamond: Scientific Purity and Rare Colour
Its counterpart, the Artemis Pink Diamond, weighs an exact 16.00 carats and is graded Fancy Intense Pink. Artemis is classified as a Type IIa diamond, the most chemically pure diamond type, containing no measurable nitrogen or boron impurities.
Natural pink diamonds are among the rarest of all fancy colours. The GIA reports that fewer than three percent of diamonds qualify as coloured diamonds, and less than five percent of those are predominantly pink. Achieving intense saturation in a diamond of this size is exceptionally uncommon.
The Artemis Pink achieved a hammer price of more than USD $15 million, confirming its status as both a collector’s gem and a scientific rarity.
Mythology Behind the Names: Apollo and Artemis
Named after the twin gods of Greek mythology, the diamonds reflect a powerful symbolic duality. Apollo, god of the sun, light, and order, mirrors the clarity and brilliance of the blue diamond. Artemis, goddess of the moon and the natural world, embodies independence, intuition, and quiet strength—qualities echoed in the pink diamond’s softer yet commanding presence.
Like their mythological namesakes, the diamonds are complete on their own, yet unmistakably connected.
How the Apollo and Artemis Diamonds Made Auction History
Although offered as separate lots, Sotheby’s later confirmed that both diamonds were acquired by the same anonymous buyer, ensuring the pair would remain together. Combined, the Apollo and Artemis diamonds achieved more than USD $57 million, setting a world record for diamond earrings sold at auction.
David Bennett, then Worldwide Chairman of Sotheby’s International Jewellery Division, expressed particular satisfaction that the stones would not be separated, noting that they were conceived as twins from the very beginning.
Following the sale, the buyer renamed the diamonds “The Memory of Autumn Leaves” and “The Dream of Autumn Leaves”, adding a personal narrative while preserving their shared identity.
A Benchmark in Diamond History
The Apollo and Artemis diamonds remain a defining moment in the history of natural fancy-coloured diamonds, setting benchmarks for rarity, value, and gemmological excellence. For laboratories, collectors, and connoisseurs alike, they represent the outer limits of what nature—and human craftsmanship—can achieve.
At the world premiere of Wuthering Heights in Los Angeles, Margot Robbie delivered a masterclass in red-carpet storytelling by wearing one of the most legendary jewels in history: Elizabeth Taylor’s heart-shaped Taj Mahal Diamond, set in its iconic Cartier necklace.
The choice was far more than a glamorous nod to vintage jewellery. By adorning the historic diamond, Robbie underscored director Emerald Fennell’s vision of Wuthering Heights as not merely a faithful adaptation of Emily Brontë’s gothic novel, but a stylised homage to Old Hollywood passion, excess and epic love stories. On screen, Robbie and Jacob Elordi embody the turbulent romance of Catherine and Heathcliff—off screen, the Taj Mahal Diamond evokes one of cinema’s most famous real-life love affairs: Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton.
A Masterstroke of Method Dressing
The inspired jewellery moment was orchestrated by Robbie’s stylist, Andrew Mukamal, renowned for his meticulously curated fashion narratives, including the global Barbie press tour. The concept began months earlier, when The Elizabeth Taylor Estate invited Mukamal to explore its unparalleled jewellery archives.
“We were thrilled when Andrew got in touch, and we offered him the Taj Mahal Diamond for Margot Robbie to wear to the world premiere of Wuthering Heights,” said Tim Mendelson, Trustee of The Elizabeth Taylor Estate. “Elizabeth deeply cherished the symbolism of jewellery. No other piece in her collection is more powerfully associated with epic, undeniable and tempestuous love that transcends time—even death—than the Taj Mahal Diamond.”
The Taj Mahal Diamond: A Jewel of Legendary Love
Few diamonds carry a narrative as rich as the Taj Mahal Diamond. Often described as a talisman of enduring devotion, the jewel perfectly mirrors the emotional intensity associated with both Wuthering Heights and Taylor’s own life.
Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton’s famously tempestuous romance began on the set of Cleopatra in 1962 and quickly became one of the most scrutinised relationships of the 20th century. Their love was marked not only by passion and public drama, but by extraordinary jewels, including the 69.42-carat Taylor-Burton Diamond, the 33.19-carat Krupp Diamond (later renamed the Elizabeth Taylor Diamond), and the Taj Mahal Diamond itself.
An Origin Rooted in Eternal Devotion
The romance of the Taj Mahal Diamond stretches back centuries. The heart-shaped, table-cut diamond is inscribed in Parsi with the words “Love is Everlasting”, alongside the name of Nur Jahan, wife of Mughal Emperor Jahangir. The jewel was later passed to their son, Emperor Shah Jahan, who is believed to have gifted it to his beloved wife, Mumtaz Mahal.
Following Mumtaz Mahal’s death in childbirth in 1631, Shah Jahan commissioned the construction of the Taj Mahal, one of the world’s most enduring monuments to love. Completed over 20 years, the white marble mausoleum remains a masterpiece of Islamic art—and the emotional origin of the diamond’s name and symbolism.
Cartier Craftsmanship and Elizabeth Taylor’s Ownership
In 1971, Cartier acquired the Taj Mahal Diamond, mounting it in jade and accenting it with table-cut diamonds and red gemstones. Celebrated Cartier designer Alfred Durante later created a woven gold and ruby necklace inspired by the original silk cord, complete with rondelles, an adjustable slide and a distinctive tassel.
The jewel was presented to Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor in 1972 by Cartier president Michael Thomas during a stopover in New York. Burton ultimately gifted the necklace to Taylor for her 40th birthday during a lavish celebration in Budapest, attended by cultural icons including Princess Grace Kelly, Ringo Starr and Michael Caine.
From Elizabeth Taylor to Margot Robbie: A New Chapter in Jewellery History
More than fifty years later, the Taj Mahal Diamond continues to captivate. Worn choker-style by Margot Robbie, with the tassel trailing elegantly down her back, the necklace once again became the centre of attention—sparking conversations, admiration and awe, just as it did when Elizabeth Taylor first wore it.
By choosing this extraordinary diamond, Robbie has added a new chapter to one of jewellery history’s greatest love stories, proving that truly iconic jewels are not just objects of beauty, but vessels of memory, emotion and timeless romance.
For the diamond world, moments like these reaffirm why provenance, craftsmanship and history remain as valuable as the gemstones themselves.
A new Natural Diamond Council report reveals why record-breaking diamonds operate in a market beyond conventional valuation models
At the very top end of the diamond market, traditional pricing frameworks cease to function. Per-carat benchmarks, standard price lists, and even established scarcity models lose relevance when value is driven not by comparables, but by the willingness of elite buyers to secure assets of extreme rarity.
This rarefied segment is the focus of Record-Breaking Diamonds, a new report by the Natural Diamond Council (NDC), which examines the largest, most valuable natural diamonds ever discovered, cut, and sold. Drawing on mining data, gemmological research, and global auction results, the report offers a detailed analysis of how extraordinary rarity reshapes value within the natural diamond supply chain.
A Century Without a Challenger
One of the report’s most striking observations is the prolonged absence of truly massive diamonds following the 1905 discovery of the Cullinan in South Africa. Weighing an unprecedented 3,106.75 carats, the Cullinan established a benchmark that would stand unchallenged for more than 110 years. Until 2015, no gem-quality diamond exceeding 1,000 carats was recovered anywhere in the world.
That changed with the discovery of the 1,109-carat Lesedi La Rona at Botswana’s Karowe mine. Its recovery marked a turning point. Since then, at least nine rough diamonds weighing over 1,000 carats have been unearthed, including two exceptional finds exceeding 2,000 carats: the 2,488-carat Motswedi in 2024 and a 2,036-carat near-gem-quality rough diamond recovered in July 2025. Both originated from Karowe, with Motswedi now ranking as the second-largest gem-quality rough diamond ever discovered.
Technology, Not Abundance
The increased frequency of such discoveries does not signal a sudden abundance of large diamonds. Rather, it reflects a fundamental shift in extraction technology. The widespread adoption of X-ray Transmission (XRT) technology has transformed diamond recovery by identifying stones based on density before ore enters the crushing circuit. This significantly reduces the risk of fracturing large diamonds during processing.
Lucara Diamond Corp.’s Karowe mine — which installed XRT technology in 2015 and introduced a Mega Diamond Recovery (MDR) system two years later — accounts for the majority of exceptional stones recovered in the past decade. Other operations employing similar systems, including the Cullinan mine and Lesotho’s Letšeng deposit, have also reported a measurable increase in large, high-value diamonds.
Even so, diamonds weighing more than 1,000 carats remain extreme statistical outliers, even with the most advanced recovery methods.
The Superdeep Advantage
Size alone does not define value at this level. Many of the diamonds highlighted in the NDC report belong to the rare Type IIa category, meaning they contain no measurable nitrogen impurities. These chemically pure stones represent only a tiny fraction of global diamond production.
Some Type IIa diamonds form at extraordinary depths — between 360 and 750 kilometres beneath the Earth’s surface, according to the Gemological Institute of America (GIA). These “superdeep” diamonds belong to the CLIPPIR population (Cullinan-like, Large, Inclusion-poor, Pure, Prismatic, Irregular, Resorbed). Formed under extreme pressures in nitrogen-poor environments, they grow slowly and uninterrupted, resulting in unusually large, highly transparent crystals with minimal internal defects.
When Per-Carat Logic Breaks Down
In this ultra-exclusive segment, pricing behaves differently. Per-carat values no longer scale predictably with size. A defining example is Lucara’s 2016 sale of the 812.77-carat Constellation diamond, which achieved US$63.1 million — the highest price ever paid for a rough diamond. Its per-carat value far exceeded any precedent for an uncut stone, reflecting buyer confidence in its exceptional quality and cutting potential.
Colour, Rarity, and Market Psychology
In the polished market, the 59.60-carat CTF Pink Star remains the most expensive diamond ever sold at auction, achieving HKD 553 million (US$71.2 million) at Sotheby’s Hong Kong in 2017. While the headline price set the record, later sales demonstrated that per-carat value is often the more telling indicator of demand.
In 2022, the 11.15-carat Williamson Pink Star sold for HKD 453.2 million (US$57.7 million), equating to more than US$5 million per carat — the highest per-carat price ever achieved by a diamond.
A similar phenomenon is evident in the blue-diamond category. Despite selling six years apart, the 14.62-carat Oppenheimer Blue (Christie’s Geneva, 2016) and the 15.10-carat De Beers Blue (Sotheby’s Hong Kong, 2022) each realised US$57.5 million, underscoring how rarity and desirability can outweigh minor differences in size or clarity.
Yellow diamonds, by contrast, trade at a substantial discount to pinks and blues, even in exceptional sizes. While the leading pink and blue diamonds regularly exceed US$1 million per carat, none of the top five yellow diamonds have reached that level. The highest-ranked example, the 100.09-carat Graff Vivid Yellow, sold for US$16.8 million in 2014 — approximately US$168,000 per carat.
Diamonds Beyond the Market
Not all record-breaking diamonds remain commercial assets. Some are removed from circulation entirely and repositioned as cultural or institutional icons. The 45.52-carat Hope Diamond, donated by Harry Winston to the Smithsonian Institution in 1958, has been viewed by more than 100 million visitors, making it one of the most publicly encountered diamonds in history.
Similarly, the 140.64-carat Regent Diamond at the Louvre serves not as a tradable asset, but as a benchmark of scale, rarity, and historical significance. Such exhibition stones continue to influence market perception, anchoring contemporary record prices within a much longer narrative of natural-diamond rarity.
As the NDC report makes clear, when diamonds reach this echelon, value is no longer governed by price lists or formulas. Instead, it is shaped by geology, technology, history, and the enduring human desire to possess the truly irreplaceable.
When evaluating contenders for the high jewellery watch category, brilliance alone is never enough. True excellence lies in the seamless fusion of exceptional gem-setting and serious watchmaking, where artistry and mechanical innovation speak with one voice. As a watch-focused publication, the benchmark is uncompromising — and this year, Tiffany & Co. has met it with remarkable confidence.
The Tiffany & Co. Bird on a Flying Tourbillon – Azure Blossom stands as a masterclass in this rare union. At first glance, the eye is drawn to the diamond-set bird, poised delicately on the edge of a flying tourbillon and surrounded by a vivid garden of appliqué lacquered blossoms. While the watch builds upon Tiffany’s inaugural flying tourbillon introduced last year, this Azure Blossom interpretation elevates the concept into the realm of true high jewellery horology.
The timepiece is a showcase of the maison’s virtuosity across multiple crafts: champlevé enamelling, lacquer work, miniature gold sculpture and, most notably, diamond setting — an area in which Tiffany & Co. has long reigned supreme. In total, the watch is set with 771 diamonds in a variety of cuts and sizes, a process that demanded over 100 hours of meticulous hand-setting. Snow setting dominates the dial and case decoration, a technically exacting method that renders the metal nearly invisible, allowing the diamonds to appear as if floating on the surface.
What truly distinguishes the Bird on a Flying Tourbillon – Azure Blossom is its unwavering connection to Tiffany & Co.’s design heritage. The sculpted bird is a direct reference to the legendary Bird on a Rock brooch, created in 1965 by Jean Schlumberger. Handcrafted from 18K white and yellow gold, the bird is set with 70 diamonds, contributing to a total diamond weight of 3.8 carats across the piece.
While Schlumberger’s bird remains eternally poised, the mechanical theatre beneath it is anything but static. The flying tourbillon completes a full rotation every 60 seconds, capped by a wafer-thin sapphire dome that is faceted like a diamond and rotates in perfect synchrony. The result is a hypnotic display of motion, light and depth.
Powering the watch is the Artime Calibre AFT24T01, a movement finished entirely by hand to the highest standards of haute horology. Bevelled edges, satin-brushed surfaces and mirror-polished components are complemented by diamond-set decorative plates. Two high-polished star-shaped bridges — a subtle nod to Tiffany’s iconic six-prong diamond setting — anchor both the tourbillon and the hours-and-minutes display, reinforcing the maison’s visual identity at every level.
Ultimately, the Bird on a Flying Tourbillon – Azure Blossom triumphs not through spectacle alone, but through coherence. Every element — from gem-setting to movement architecture — speaks the same refined language, one deeply rooted in Tiffany & Co.’s heritage. In a category that demands both poetry and precision, this extraordinary timepiece delivers both with rare elegance.
Aim- and BSE-listed Botswana Diamonds has been awarded eight new prospecting licences covering approximately 7,000 km² in north-western Botswana, marking a strategic expansion into copper exploration, with additional potential for gold and other critical minerals.
The licences, valid until 31 December 2028, were identified through an extensive AI-driven analysis of the company’s 95,000 km² Botswana-focused exploration database. This dataset includes comprehensive geophysical survey information, which highlighted strong prospectivity for copper, alongside indications of gold and energy-transition metals.
The same proprietary AI technology has previously delivered notable success in diamond exploration, identifying six previously unreported kimberlite-prone areas for which Botswana Diamonds also holds licences.
The company said the move into copper reflects ongoing weakness in the global diamond market, combined with robust and growing demand for copper and other minerals critical to the global energy transition.
Botswana Diamonds highlighted Botswana’s stable operating environment and strong geological potential, noting active copper mining and exploration in the country. Established operators include MMG and Sandfire Resources, while exploration activity is also being undertaken by Cobre, which has a joint venture with BHP, as well as Kavango Resources, Galileo Resources and Aterian.
Initial discussions have already commenced with potential partners regarding joint venture opportunities to advance exploration across the newly awarded licences. The company plans to undertake close-spaced geophysical and geochemical surveys to define priority drill targets.
Despite the diversification, Botswana Diamonds confirmed it remains committed to its core diamond strategy and will continue to monitor market conditions and capital deployment into its diamond assets.
Chairperson John Teeling said the latest AI analysis had delivered “exceptional results”, following the earlier identification of kimberlite-prone ground that led to the discovery of six previously unknown anomalies.
“The outcomes were outstanding. We have now secured eight prospecting licences covering many of these areas. Copper and other energy-related minerals are critical to the energy transition for a greener future,” Teeling said on 26 January.
He added that while the diamond market is currently under pressure, the company’s long-term focus on diamonds remains unchanged.
“These market conditions will improve, and this strategy allows us to continue progressing as a mining company while remaining committed to diamonds over the longer term. In the meantime, there has been strong third-party interest in both our technology and our results, creating clear potential to advance these licences efficiently through partnerships and structured exploration programmes,” Teeling said.
