Rare pink diamond may fetch USD 28 million at Geneva auction
Geneva:An exceptionally rare cushion-shaped ‘fancy’ vivid pink diamond – the largest ever of its kind to go to auction – is expected to fetch up to a whopping USD 28 million.
The 16.08-carat diamond is set as a ring and will go under the hammer in Geneva on November 10 at Christie’s auction house, which estimates the gem to sell for around USD 23-28 million. In almost 250 years of auction history, only three pure vivid pink diamonds of over ten carats have appeared for sale, Christie’s said. The pink diamond set in a ring is surrounded by a double row of pave white diamonds, highlighting the main stone, with a third row of small pink diamonds underneath. In the realm of natural coloured diamonds, those of a distinct pink hue are the most sought after among gem connoisseurs — regularly achieving record auction prices. While most pink diamonds exhibit a colour modifier, like purple, orange, brown or grey, the 16.08-carat stone shows no trace of secondary colour, making it both attractive and exceptionally rare.
The stone’s even colour distribution, combined with a balanced saturation and tone and straight pink hue, qualify the gem for the coveted ‘Fancy Vivid’ colour grading from the Gemological Institute of America (GIA).
In fact, fewer than 10 per cent of pink diamonds weigh more than one-fifth of a carat. “As large and rare coloured diamonds of this calibre become increasingly hard to locate, this 16.08 carat Fancy Vivid pink diamond comes to market at a time when great gems are mirroring prices achieved for masterpieces in the world of fine art,” said Rahul Kadakia, Christie’s International Head of Jewellery.
The world auction record price per carat for any pink diamond is held by The Vivid Pink, a cushion-shaped fancy vivid pink diamond of 5 carats that sold for an astounding USD 2,155,332 per carat at Christie’s Hong Kong in 2009. (PTI)
‘Snakeskin’ textured mountains spotted on Pluto
Washington: Astronomers analysing new high-resolution images of Pluto from NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft have spotted ‘snakeskin’ textured mountains on the dwarf planet that are both “dazzling and mystifying”.
A colour image of Pluto taken by New Horizons unveiled rounded and bizarrely textured mountains, informally named the Tartarus Dorsa, rise up along Pluto’s day-night terminator. The image also shows intricate but puzzling patterns of blue-gray ridges and reddish material in between.
“It looks more like tree bark or dragon scales than geology,” said William McKinnon, New Horizons Geology, Geophysics and Imaging (GGI) team deputy lead from Washington University. (PTI)
