Record Breaking Red Diamond

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The reddish-orange diamond of 3.15 cts,. which sold at Christie’s in New York on December 10 for $2.09 million. (Photo Credit: Christie’s)

Record-breaking Christie’s auction sees red diamond sold for $666,200 per carat
The final lot in the sale at Christie’s auction house in New York on December 10 was possibly the most eagerly awaited. It was a rare diamond of 3.15 cts., which was said to be the largest reddish-orange diamond ever graded at the Gemological Institute of America.

The low end of the diamond’s estimated selling price had been $700,000 and the high end had been $1.2 million. But it went for $2.09 million, setting a new per-carat auction world record for a red diamond of $666,200.

It is not the largest red diamond is existence. The gem collection at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. boasts a circular-cut 5.03-ct. fancy dark red stone.

And it was not the only record set at the auction. An 8.90-ct. Kashmir sapphire was sold for $1.37 million, or $154,000 per ct.

The most expensive lot was a white rectangular-cut diamond, weighing approximately 50.01 cts. It was graded with a D color, VVS2 clarity, and came with a pre-sale price estimate of $7 million to $10 million. Set in a platinum ring crafted by Graff Jewelers of London, it included two tapered baguette-cut diamond side stones.

And it was Laurence Graff himself who bought the 50.01-ct. diamond, for $8.37 million. “This is the third time that I have owned this beautiful diamond and I am as thrilled today as I was the first time,” he said after the sale.

Christie’s had a good day. The jewelry sale sold goods for a total of $32.5 million, with sell-through rates of 84 percent by lot and 86 percent by value.