The 23.24-carat “Golconda Blue” diamond was set to be the largest fancy vivid blue diamond ever offered at auction, according to Christie’s. Over the weekend, news broke that the seller has opted to withdraw the stone from Christie’s upcoming jewelry auction.
Geneva—The “Golconda Blue,” a 23.24-carat blue diamond set to headline Christie’s Magnificent Jewels sale next month, has been pulled from the sale.
The diamond, once owned by Indian royals, would have been the largest fancy vivid blue diamond ever offered at auction.
Set in a ring by Joel Arthur Rosenthal, better known as JAR, it was estimated to sell for $35 million to $50 million.
The “Golconda Blue” diamond was set in a ring designed by JAR.
Christie’s told National Jeweler that the diamond’s owner, who has not been named, made a personal decision to sell it within the family rather than put it up for auction.
According to the Forbes article, neither “tariffs nor any financial market movement” played a role in their decision.
The diamond, in the midst of a world tour, was on view in Hong Kong when the decision was made to pull it, Forbes reported.
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Golconda diamonds, mined in southern India, were the first diamonds in the world to be discovered, with the first reference to their existence found in a 4th-century artifact.
The Golconda Blue belonged to Yeshwant Rao Holkar II, the Maharaja of Indore, in the 1920s and 1930s.
French jewelry house Mauboussin set the diamond in a sautoir that also featured the famed “Indore Pears,” a pair of pear-shaped diamonds weighing more than 40 carats each.
The Maharaja’s wife, Sanyogitabai Devi (1914-1937), the Maharani of Indore, wearing the Golconda Blue mounted in an Art Deco Mauboussin sautoir. The portrait is by Bernard Boutet de Monvel (1881-1949).
Harry Winston bought the Indore Pears in 1946 and the Golconda Blue diamond in 1947.
He sold the diamond set in a brooch to the Maharaja of Baroda.
Eventually, Winston reacquired the diamond, set it in a different piece of jewelry, and sold it to its current owner, Christie’s said.
Christie’s Magnificent Jewels auction is set to take place May 14 at the Four Seasons Hotel des Bergues Geneva.
While the auction no longer includes the Golconda Blue, there is a 21-piece collection of jewelry by JAR up for sale. Christie’s said it is one of the largest and most important private collections of works by designer.
