Friday, February 13, 2015

Carbon Trading: Sotheby’s to Sell 100 Carat ‘Perfect’ Diamond in New York

From Art Market Monitor:

 9331 100C Purple Front
Sotheby’s is talking about their 100ct diamond, estimated in the $19-25m range, as an asset class all its own.
Mined by DeBeers in southern Africa, the stone was 200cts rough and the firm spent a year having it polished and cut. According to Lisa Hubbard:
“The rarest object of natural beauty on the market right now, this 100-carat diamond could be considered the ultimate acquisition. Simply put, it has everything you could ever want from a diamond: the classic shape begs to be worn, while the quality puts it in an asset class of its own.”
Just to give you a sense of what a big deal this is, there have only been five other “perfect” 100ct diamonds auctioned before. As you can see from the list, the prices have been moving steadily upward:
  • ‘The Mouawad Splendour’ 101.84 carats Modified Pear-shape, D color, Internally Flawless Sold for US$12.7 million / US$125,295 per carat Sotheby’s Geneva, 1990
  • ‘The Star of Happiness’ 100.36 carats Rectangular modified brilliant-cut, D color, Internally Flawless Sold for US$11.9 million / US$118,397 per carat Sotheby’s Geneva, 1993...
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