Sotheby's will auction a set of eight rare blue diamonds worth over $70 million at its Magnificent Jewels auctions in New York, Hong Kong, and Geneva from November 2022 to early 2023. The De Beers diamond collection is one of the most valuable ever sold at auction.
（The De Beers Exceptional Blue Collection, photo courtesy of Sotheby Group）
The collection was cut from 5 diamonds with a total weight of 85.62 carats purchased by De Beers and Diacore in 2020 from the Cullinan mine in South Africa, the source of a 15.10 carat brilliant blue diamond, which was sold in April this year for $57.5 million.
The De Beers Extraordinary Blue Diamond is a collection of eight incomparable blue diamonds, weighing a total of 32.09 carats and varying in shape and weight from a 1.22 carat oval brilliant cut to an 11.29 carat square step cut. Four of these eight blue diamonds have been graded by the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) as 'Fancy Vivid', the highest grade of fancy color diamond hue.
As diamonds are the hardest material on earth, the skill and precision required to cut them is not to be underestimated; cutting blue diamonds is more challenging than other diamonds: they are so unique and rare in their crystallization that each faceting step must be done with the utmost care and precision, with no room for error, otherwise their color will be compromised and the beauty of this natural gem will be ruined. De Beers' unparalleled expertise in diamond mining and assembly, combined with Diacore's unparalleled gem cutting and polishing expertise, has resulted in these eight exceptional blue diamonds.
"Blue diamonds of any size are treasures of the world, so it is a rare opportunity for Sotheby's to present as many as eight blue diamonds of different sizes and shapes. We are delighted to have been commissioned by De Beers and Diacore to offer this unprecedented collection of blue diamonds.", said Wenhao Yu, chairman of Jewellery and Watches at Sotheby's Asia.