HONG KONG - An internally flawless, vivid blue 10.10
carat oval diamond smashed auction records on Tuesday when it sold for
US$31.8 million at Sotheby's, the highest price paid for a gemstone at
auction in Asia.
An anonymous telephone bidder purchased the jewel at Sotheby's spring sales in the auction that lasted just minutes.
"Very few gemstones have ever been sold for more than that,
and it's setting the record price here in Asia for a gemstone in
auction,” said David Bennett, Sotheby's worldwide chairman of the
international jewelry division.
He added that the economic downturn in China has not had any immediate impact on the Asian jewelry market.
The diamond, known as the De Beers Millennium Jewel 4, was
mined in South Africa. It is the largest diamond of its kind to appear
at auction. It was one of 12 in De Beers Millennium Jewels collection
that was unveiled in 2000 in London.
The world auction record for a diamond or gemstone was set
in Geneva last November when a 12.03-carat cushion-shaped internally
flawless vivid blue diamond fetched US$48.5 million.
- Reuters
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