Auctions

100-carat diamond sells for $22M at Sotheby’s

AuctionsAug 12, 2016

100-carat diamond sells for $22M at Sotheby’s

The sale of the internally flawless, D color Type IIa diamond marked several auction firsts but still fell slightly short of its highest pre-sale estimate of $25 million.


Called the “ultimate emerald-cut diamond,” this 100.2-carat stone sold for slightly more than $22 million ($220,459 per carat) at Sotheby’s New York Tuesday. 
New York--An anonymous buyer who called in their bid became the owner of one impressive diamond on Tuesday.

A 100.2-carat, internally flawless, D color Type IIa diamond sold for $22.1 million at Sotheby’s New York jewelry sale on April 21, marking several auction firsts but still falling slightly short of its highest pre-sale estimate, $25 million.

According to Sotheby’s, the stone is the largest “perfect” diamond with a classic emerald cut ever sold at auction; the first 100-carat-plus perfect diamond sold at an auction held in New York; and the $22 million paid for it is a record for a colorless diamond auctioned in New York.

Lisa Hubbard, chairman of Sotheby’s jewelry division for North and South America, said the stone, which “captivated people around the world,” is the sixth perfect diamond weighing more than 100 carats sold at auction in the last 25 years. Five out of those six were sold by Sotheby’s, she noted.

The hundred-carat stunner led Tuesday’s Magnificent Jewels sale and was one-third of the auction’s $65.1 million total, a new record for Sotheby’s in New York.

No other lot even came close.  

The second highest-grossing lot, a 22.30-carat, D internally flawless oval-shaped diamond ring, sold for $3.3 million while the “Flagler Emerald,” a Colombian emerald and diamond pendant, went for $2.8 million.

Full results are available on the Sotheby’s website.

Michelle Graffis the editor-in-chief at National Jeweler, directing the publication’s coverage both online and in print.

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