A flawless white diamond with a high estimate of $19 million will feature in Sotheby’s Magnificent Jewels and Jadeite auction in Hong Kong next months.
The emerald cut, 80.88 carat, D color, type IIa stone is valued at $12.8 million to $19.1 million USD, and is one of only five emerald cut diamonds over 80 carats offered in auction history, Sotheby’s said Monday.
A 10.64 carat, fancy vivid purplish pink, internally flawless diamond, polished as a radiant cut, with the outline of an emerald cut, is set to go under the hammer at the October 7 sale for $19.1 million to $25.5 million. The auction house will also feature a necklace by designer Anna Hu, containing a 100.02-carat, fancy intense yellow diamond, estimated at $5.1 million to $6.4 million.
“It is thrilling to be able to bring together three top class diamonds this autumn, all of which are exceptional in quality and rarely seen on the market, let alone presented in a single sale,” said Yvonne Chu, acting head of Sotheby’s Hong Kong jewelry division. “We are set for a bright season ahead.”
Also up for auction are an 11.88 carat, pigeon’s blood Burmese ruby and diamond ring, mounted by designer Raymond Yard and valued at $5.6 million to $8.2 million, and a jadeite bead necklace with a diamond clasp, estimated at $3.2 million to $4.1 million.
Other notable items include a 19th century 37.29 carat sapphire and diamond brooch. The piece, which Richard Burton gave to Elizabeth Taylor during their marriage, has a presale estimate of $1.7 million to $2.3 million.
Sotheby’s will showcase the pieces throughout Asia before the auction.
A flawless white diamond with a high estimate of $19 million will feature in Sotheby’s Magnificent Jewels and Jadeite auction in Hong Kong next months.
The emerald cut, 80.88 carat, D color, type IIa stone is valued at $12.8 million to $19.1 million USD, and is one of only five emerald cut diamonds over 80 carats offered in auction history, Sotheby’s said Monday.
A 10.64 carat, fancy vivid purplish pink, internally flawless diamond, polished as a radiant cut, with the outline of an emerald cut, is set to go under the hammer at the October 7 sale for $19.1 million to $25.5 million. The auction house will also feature a necklace by designer Anna Hu, containing a 100.02-carat, fancy intense yellow diamond, estimated at $5.1 million to $6.4 million.
“It is thrilling to be able to bring together three top class diamonds this autumn, all of which are exceptional in quality and rarely seen on the market, let alone presented in a single sale,” said Yvonne Chu, acting head of Sotheby’s Hong Kong jewelry division. “We are set for a bright season ahead.”
Also up for auction are an 11.88 carat, pigeon’s blood Burmese ruby and diamond ring, mounted by designer Raymond Yard and valued at $5.6 million to $8.2 million, and a jadeite bead necklace with a diamond clasp, estimated at $3.2 million to $4.1 million.
Other notable items include a 19th century 37.29 carat sapphire and diamond brooch. The piece, which Richard Burton gave to Elizabeth Taylor during their marriage, has a presale estimate of $1.7 million to $2.3 million.
Sotheby’s will showcase the pieces throughout Asia before the auction.
Russia’s Alrosa is talking to several global jewelery retailers about jointly marketing the miner’s jewelery brand that uses fluorescent diamonds, as it strives to create a new niche for the natural stones.
Diamond miners, which have long excelled at marketing, are seeking new approaches to battle falling demand and competition from diamonds manufactured in laboratories.
“We are completing talks with several major companies in different regions,” Alrosa Chief Executive Sergei Ivanov told Reuters.
Alrosa, which now sells these diamonds mixed with others in “lots”, expects the retailers to start offering its fluorescent stones in a year under the brand “Luminous Diamonds”, which it has recently created, in separate corners of their stores.
The aim is to create a new market for stones with fluorescence, often a blueish glow visible under light, that are still considered by many traders as being of lower quality.
Global demand for all types of diamonds has been hit by a trade war between the United States and China, the world’s two biggest diamond markets. Prices for smaller stones have fallen as deliberate output reductions have yet to remove oversupply. Alrosa and its competitors, chiefly Anglo American’s (AAL.L) De Beers, are betting on a “value over volume” strategy. Alrosa expects to produce 38.5 million carats in 2019 but will sell only 32 million to 33 million carats, stockpiling the rest until better days.
Alrosa does not disclose the names of the retailers it is talking to but says it has no plans to start its own retail business. Product sales will be organized by retailers via their own distribution chains.
“Our aim is to supply fluorescent polished diamonds – cut by Alrosa or its clients – to retailers and provide marketing support, including jewelery design if needed,” Ivanov said.
FLUORESCENT ADOLESCENT Fluorescence, a bluish glow produced by ultraviolet rays from a lamp or the sun, is a characteristic of 25% to 35% of diamonds, according to the Gemological Institute of America (GIA). It is not bad for the precious stone, according to GIA, and it is not a grading factor like the traditional 4Cs — color, clarity, cut and carat weight — used to determine quality.
About half of all diamonds produced globally have some fluorescence, while 3% to 10% have strong fluorescence, Ivanov said.
But such diamonds are more difficult to sell as many traders now consider stones with more fluorescence as lower quality, so they often trade at a 25% to 45% discount, even though they could demand a premium several decades ago, he said.
With global annual rough diamond sales of $15 billion and diamond jewelery demand at $85 billion, any new marketing niche is attractive for the entire supply chain.
Diamond industry players have long been betting on “millennial”, born between the early 1980s and early 2000s, and “generation Z”, born from the mid-1990s to early 2000s, as drivers of growth in jewelery demand as their spending power rises.
Alrosa aims to woo this generation with florescent stones.
Recent research conducted by a consulting company for Alrosa in the United States and China showed millennial liked the stones for their unusual quality in jewelery, Ivanov said.
Alrosa fluorescence diamond daylight and black-light “We saw that it can become a fashionable product and interesting for these young people,” he said.
The same research also showed positive results among women, so the “Luminous Diamonds” brand sought to appeal to women’s independence and purchasing power, which was rising in the United States, China and India, the CEO added.
“It will be a special line. A diamond which glows in a night club, in a theater or even in the rays of sun,” Ivanov said. “We see this demand in opinion polls and are sure that we will convert it into sales.”
Russia’s Alrosa is talking to several global jewelery retailers about jointly marketing the miner’s jewelery brand that uses fluorescent diamonds, as it strives to create a new niche for the natural stones.
Diamond miners, which have long excelled at marketing, are seeking new approaches to battle falling demand and competition from diamonds manufactured in laboratories.
“We are completing talks with several major companies in different regions,” Alrosa Chief Executive Sergei Ivanov told Reuters.
Alrosa, which now sells these diamonds mixed with others in “lots”, expects the retailers to start offering its fluorescent stones in a year under the brand “Luminous Diamonds”, which it has recently created, in separate corners of their stores.
The aim is to create a new market for stones with fluorescence, often a blueish glow visible under light, that are still considered by many traders as being of lower quality.
Global demand for all types of diamonds has been hit by a trade war between the United States and China, the world’s two biggest diamond markets. Prices for smaller stones have fallen as deliberate output reductions have yet to remove oversupply. Alrosa and its competitors, chiefly Anglo American’s (AAL.L) De Beers, are betting on a “value over volume” strategy. Alrosa expects to produce 38.5 million carats in 2019 but will sell only 32 million to 33 million carats, stockpiling the rest until better days.
Alrosa does not disclose the names of the retailers it is talking to but says it has no plans to start its own retail business. Product sales will be organized by retailers via their own distribution chains.
“Our aim is to supply fluorescent polished diamonds – cut by Alrosa or its clients – to retailers and provide marketing support, including jewelery design if needed,” Ivanov said.
FLUORESCENT ADOLESCENT Fluorescence, a bluish glow produced by ultraviolet rays from a lamp or the sun, is a characteristic of 25% to 35% of diamonds, according to the Gemological Institute of America (GIA). It is not bad for the precious stone, according to GIA, and it is not a grading factor like the traditional 4Cs — color, clarity, cut and carat weight — used to determine quality.
About half of all diamonds produced globally have some fluorescence, while 3% to 10% have strong fluorescence, Ivanov said.
But such diamonds are more difficult to sell as many traders now consider stones with more fluorescence as lower quality, so they often trade at a 25% to 45% discount, even though they could demand a premium several decades ago, he said.
With global annual rough diamond sales of $15 billion and diamond jewelery demand at $85 billion, any new marketing niche is attractive for the entire supply chain.
Diamond industry players have long been betting on “millennial”, born between the early 1980s and early 2000s, and “generation Z”, born from the mid-1990s to early 2000s, as drivers of growth in jewelery demand as their spending power rises.
Alrosa aims to woo this generation with florescent stones.
Recent research conducted by a consulting company for Alrosa in the United States and China showed millennial liked the stones for their unusual quality in jewelery, Ivanov said.
Alrosa fluorescence diamond daylight and black-light “We saw that it can become a fashionable product and interesting for these young people,” he said.
The same research also showed positive results among women, so the “Luminous Diamonds” brand sought to appeal to women’s independence and purchasing power, which was rising in the United States, China and India, the CEO added.
“It will be a special line. A diamond which glows in a night club, in a theater or even in the rays of sun,” Ivanov said. “We see this demand in opinion polls and are sure that we will convert it into sales.”
Bonhams will spotlight a 2.17 carat Van Cleef & Arpels blue diamond ring at its upcoming sale, estimating it will fetch $800,000 to $1.2 million USD.
The emerald cut, fancy intense blue, VVS2 clarity diamond is accented by round brilliant cut diamonds. The piece, from a private collection, will lead the September 26 New York Jewels auction.
Other pieces from the Van Cleef collection include an oval shaped, 21.56 carat Burmese sapphire ring flanked by diamonds, valued at $250,000 to $350,000. An emerald cut, 6.09 carat, fancy vivid yellow diamond ring, surrounded by white diamonds, is estimated at $140,000 to $180,000.
The sale will also feature a round brilliant cut, 11.11 carat, E color, VS2 clarity diamond, which is expected to go under the hammer for $250,000 to $450,000. A 24.64 carat, fancy yellow diamond ring, centered between two white diamonds, is valued at $270,000 to $370,000, while a cushion shaped, modified brilliant cut, fancy deep pink diamond ring weighing 2.42 carats carries an estimate of $200,000 to $300,000.
Several Art Deco pieces, including two items from the estate of German silent-film actor Joseph Schildkraut, will also be up for auction.
Bonhams will hold an exhibition tour of the pieces in Los Angeles, Hong Kong and New York prior to the sale.
Bonhams will spotlight a 2.17 carat Van Cleef & Arpels blue diamond ring at its upcoming sale, estimating it will fetch $800,000 to $1.2 million USD.
The emerald cut, fancy intense blue, VVS2 clarity diamond is accented by round brilliant cut diamonds. The piece, from a private collection, will lead the September 26 New York Jewels auction.
Other pieces from the Van Cleef collection include an oval shaped, 21.56 carat Burmese sapphire ring flanked by diamonds, valued at $250,000 to $350,000. An emerald cut, 6.09 carat, fancy vivid yellow diamond ring, surrounded by white diamonds, is estimated at $140,000 to $180,000.
The sale will also feature a round brilliant cut, 11.11 carat, E color, VS2 clarity diamond, which is expected to go under the hammer for $250,000 to $450,000. A 24.64 carat, fancy yellow diamond ring, centered between two white diamonds, is valued at $270,000 to $370,000, while a cushion shaped, modified brilliant cut, fancy deep pink diamond ring weighing 2.42 carats carries an estimate of $200,000 to $300,000.
Several Art Deco pieces, including two items from the estate of German silent-film actor Joseph Schildkraut, will also be up for auction.
Bonhams will hold an exhibition tour of the pieces in Los Angeles, Hong Kong and New York prior to the sale.
A labourer in Bundelkhand region turned second time lucky when he got another diamond within a week in a piece of land he took on lease from the district administration in Panna district. The value of the diamond is estimated at about Rs 20 lakh, a mineral resources department official said.
The lessee, Kishor Kushwaha, a resident of Sarkoha village got the diamond of 5.69 carat in a field in the area in Panna district. He deposited it with the mineral resources department office on Saturday, said Panna diamond office authority Anupam Singh.
Panna district, 413 km north east of Bhopal in Bundelkhand region, has the only diamond producing mine in the country, which is under operation, as per the department officials.
Panna diamond office authority Anupam Singh said, “The diamond that the lessee has found may get him about Rs 20 lakh on its auction. Earlier, the same person got a diamond of 4.4 carat about a week back, which was, however, of better quality and was valued about at Rs 20 to Rs 25 lakh. The lessee was assisted by three others in his work.”
The labourer got the piece of land on lease on March 1, 2019 and the lease period will expire on December 31, 2019. “It rarely happens when a person gets another diamond twice within a week or so,” he said.
Talking to the media Kishor said, “I am extremely happy that Mother Earth blessed me with this gift of diamonds. I make both ends meet by doing labour work. I will share whatever money I get with my partners Ajay Singh, Mahadev Kushwaha, Purshotam Lal and Vimal who also put in hard labour.”
He said he wanted to spend the money on education of his children.
