Blue Diamond Sells for $14M at Sotheby’s

Sotheby’s brought in a total of $40.2 million at its Hong Kong auction Wednesday as a 5 carat blue diamond fetched $13.8 million.

The price of the step cut, fancy vivid blue, named the Ai diamond, after the Chinese word for love, fell within its estimate of $12.5 million to $15.3 million. The final selling price translated to $2.8 million per carat.

Another blue diamond a pear shaped, fancy intense blue weighing 3.47 carats sold for $3.1 million at the Magnificent Jewels and Jadeite auction against a pre-sale estimate of $2.7 million to $3.6 million.

A step cut, 18.45 carat, D color, VVS2 clarity diamond ring fetched $2.3 million, smashing its estimate of $1.3 million to $1.7 million.

However, only one piece out of a collection of jewels by designer Wallace Chan found a buyer: a pair of jade and diamond earrings, estimated at $70,160 to $108,430, which went for $87,700.

Several jewels by Harry Winston, Van Cleef & Arpels and Cartier also sold at the auction.

Sotheby’s sold 65% of all lots on offer, it said.

Source: Diamonds.net

Blue Diamond Sells for $14M at Sotheby’s

Sotheby’s brought in a total of $40.2 million at its Hong Kong auction Wednesday as a 5 carat blue diamond fetched $13.8 million.

The price of the step cut, fancy vivid blue, named the Ai diamond, after the Chinese word for love, fell within its estimate of $12.5 million to $15.3 million. The final selling price translated to $2.8 million per carat.

Another blue diamond a pear shaped, fancy intense blue weighing 3.47 carats sold for $3.1 million at the Magnificent Jewels and Jadeite auction against a pre-sale estimate of $2.7 million to $3.6 million.

A step cut, 18.45 carat, D color, VVS2 clarity diamond ring fetched $2.3 million, smashing its estimate of $1.3 million to $1.7 million.

However, only one piece out of a collection of jewels by designer Wallace Chan found a buyer: a pair of jade and diamond earrings, estimated at $70,160 to $108,430, which went for $87,700.

Several jewels by Harry Winston, Van Cleef & Arpels and Cartier also sold at the auction.

Sotheby’s sold 65% of all lots on offer, it said.

Source: Diamonds.net

Rio Tinto unveils Argyle’s largest Fancy Purplish Red diamond

Rio Tinto has revealed its 2018 Argyle Pink Diamonds Tender in New York, including the Argyle Muse, the largest purplish red diamond ever offered.

The Argyle Muse, a 2.28-carat oval shaped Fancy Purplish Red gem, is one of 63 diamonds weighing a total of 51.48 carats being tendered at the event.

Argyle in Western Australia is the world’s only consistent source of rare pink, red and violet diamonds.

The 2018 tender is named Magnificent Argyle in honour of the mine’s role in charting the history of the world’s most coveted diamonds.

Rio Tinto copper and diamonds chief executive Arnaud Soirat said New York was the epicentre for rare fancy coloured diamond collectors and a key market for gems from Argyle.

“This is our 34th Argyle Pink Diamonds Tender and the potency of colours in this collection is a testament to the extraordinary Argyle ore body – rare fancy coloured diamonds, created and limited by nature.” Soirat said.
“The combination of strong demand and extremely limited world supply continues to support significant value appreciation for these stunning diamonds.”

The tender includes five Fancy Red diamonds, two Purplish Red diamonds and three Violet diamonds.

It includes six hero diamonds, which Rio Tinto selected for their unique beauty and were named to ensure a permanent record of their contribution to the history of Argyle’s diamonds.

Source: australianmining

Rio Tinto unveils Argyle’s largest Fancy Purplish Red diamond

Rio Tinto has revealed its 2018 Argyle Pink Diamonds Tender in New York, including the Argyle Muse, the largest purplish red diamond ever offered.

The Argyle Muse, a 2.28-carat oval shaped Fancy Purplish Red gem, is one of 63 diamonds weighing a total of 51.48 carats being tendered at the event.

Argyle in Western Australia is the world’s only consistent source of rare pink, red and violet diamonds.

The 2018 tender is named Magnificent Argyle in honour of the mine’s role in charting the history of the world’s most coveted diamonds.

Rio Tinto copper and diamonds chief executive Arnaud Soirat said New York was the epicentre for rare fancy coloured diamond collectors and a key market for gems from Argyle.

“This is our 34th Argyle Pink Diamonds Tender and the potency of colours in this collection is a testament to the extraordinary Argyle ore body – rare fancy coloured diamonds, created and limited by nature.” Soirat said.
“The combination of strong demand and extremely limited world supply continues to support significant value appreciation for these stunning diamonds.”

The tender includes five Fancy Red diamonds, two Purplish Red diamonds and three Violet diamonds.

It includes six hero diamonds, which Rio Tinto selected for their unique beauty and were named to ensure a permanent record of their contribution to the history of Argyle’s diamonds.

Source: australianmining

Diavik ‘Stars Of The Arctic’ Provide Rough Diamond Tender Sparkle

Rio Tinto and Dominion Diamond Mines have revealed three of the finest large rough diamonds from their Canadian diamond mine that will be tendered to diamond specialists from around the world.

Collectively known as The Diavik Stars of the Arctic, the three rough diamonds showcase a rare combination of size, quality and color from the Diavik diamond mine in the remote Northwest Territories of Canada, 220 kilometers south of the Arctic Circle, the miner said in a statement.

The Diavik Stars of the Arctic will headline Rio Tinto’s forthcoming “Specials” Tender, which showcases rough diamonds greater than 10.8 carats. Taking their inspiration from constellations across the night skies of the North.

The Diavik Stars of the Arctic comprised of the, Vega of the Arctic, 177.71 carats, one of the largest and most valuable gem quality rough diamonds ever produced in Canada , Altair of the Arctic, 59.10 carats, a white gem quality rough diamond Capella of the Actic , 24.82 carats, a yellow diamond

Diavik Diamond Mines president and chief operating officer Patrick Boitumelo said, “Diavik diamonds are over two billion years old and it has taken 15 years of production to unearth these extraordinary diamonds, underscoring the ongoing importance of the Diavik ore body in the context of the global diamond industry.”
The Diavik Diamond Mine owned by Rio Tinto 60 per cent and joint venture partner Dominion Diamond Mines (40%) began production in 2003 and has been a fully underground mining operation since 2012. It recently opened its fourth pipe, the A21 pipe, which will provide an important source of incremental production.

The Diavik mine produces predominantly gem quality diamonds destined for high end jewelry in all major consumer markets around the world. The discovery of Lot 3, Capella of the Arctic, a large yellow diamond is very rare, with the mine on average producing only five of these diamonds each year, in effect less than 0.001% of annual production.

The Diavik Stars of the Arctic will be showcased in Antwerp and Israel to large diamond specialists from around the world before bids close on October 25.

Source: IDEX Online

Diavik ‘Stars Of The Arctic’ Provide Rough Diamond Tender Sparkle

Rio Tinto and Dominion Diamond Mines have revealed three of the finest large rough diamonds from their Canadian diamond mine that will be tendered to diamond specialists from around the world.

Collectively known as The Diavik Stars of the Arctic, the three rough diamonds showcase a rare combination of size, quality and color from the Diavik diamond mine in the remote Northwest Territories of Canada, 220 kilometers south of the Arctic Circle, the miner said in a statement.

The Diavik Stars of the Arctic will headline Rio Tinto’s forthcoming “Specials” Tender, which showcases rough diamonds greater than 10.8 carats. Taking their inspiration from constellations across the night skies of the North.

The Diavik Stars of the Arctic comprised of the, Vega of the Arctic, 177.71 carats, one of the largest and most valuable gem quality rough diamonds ever produced in Canada , Altair of the Arctic, 59.10 carats, a white gem quality rough diamond Capella of the Actic , 24.82 carats, a yellow diamond

Diavik Diamond Mines president and chief operating officer Patrick Boitumelo said, “Diavik diamonds are over two billion years old and it has taken 15 years of production to unearth these extraordinary diamonds, underscoring the ongoing importance of the Diavik ore body in the context of the global diamond industry.”
The Diavik Diamond Mine owned by Rio Tinto 60 per cent and joint venture partner Dominion Diamond Mines (40%) began production in 2003 and has been a fully underground mining operation since 2012. It recently opened its fourth pipe, the A21 pipe, which will provide an important source of incremental production.

The Diavik mine produces predominantly gem quality diamonds destined for high end jewelry in all major consumer markets around the world. The discovery of Lot 3, Capella of the Arctic, a large yellow diamond is very rare, with the mine on average producing only five of these diamonds each year, in effect less than 0.001% of annual production.

The Diavik Stars of the Arctic will be showcased in Antwerp and Israel to large diamond specialists from around the world before bids close on October 25.

Source: IDEX Online

Fluorescence Has No Negative Impact on Diamond Colour

HRD Antwerp, a leading European authority in diamond certification, recently undertook a study entitled “The Effect of Fluorescence on the Colour of a Diamond”, concluding that even strong fluorescence does not negatively impact a diamond’s appearance. In fact, their findings demonstrate the contrary: under normal conditions and even when outdoors, strong fluorescence has a positive influence on the color of diamonds.

This finding directly contradicts the common perception that fluorescence is a negative property of diamonds, driving down their value. Given HRD Antwerp’s findings, they conclude there is no justification for the price penalties that currently apply to fluorescent diamonds.

Fluorescence, along with the 4Cs (carat weight, clarity, color and cut) is an important characteristic of a diamond and influences its value. Typically, in the diamond trade, it is perceived as a negative property, which drives the value of fluorescent diamonds down. HRD Antwerp’s study found this common perception is not justified. To make this determination, the lab set out to identify how fluorescence influences the color grading results by gemologists in standard laboratory environments, as well as to assess how fluorescence influences the visual appearance of a diamond for regular consumers. The latter was in fact the main purpose of the study: to determine the impact on the appearance of a mounted diamond as observed by an end consumer.

The experiments HRD Antwerp conducted in its laboratory revealed several significant points, foremost of which is that diamond fluorescence has no influence on the color grading of a diamond in a laboratory environment, due to the insignificant UV content in conventional grading lamps. In short, fluorescence should not lower the official color grade. Furthermore, conventional grading through the pavilion (lower half) of a diamond in outdoor conditions actually improves the color grade for diamonds with a fluorescence grade above ‘medium’.

 As an example, a diamond graded in the HRD Antwerp laboratory as a J color with very strong fluorescence can appear as a D color when examined in outdoor conditions. When the diamond is examined through the table (face up), there is still an improvement in color, although this change is less significant.

The results of HRD Antwerp’s study thus support findings from earlier studies conducted by other labs, adding additional objective assessments. It confirms that even very strong fluorescence has no detrimental effect on the appearance of diamonds in a laboratory setting, and when viewed through the pavilion in outdoor conditions, it results in a clear improvement in a diamond’s color. For the wearer or casual observer, fluorescence has a neutral or even positive impact on the appearance of a diamond, making it appear to be more colorless.

Given these observations, HRD Antwerp concludes there are no grounds on which to justify the price penalties that currently apply to fluorescent diamonds.