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(MoneyNewsWire.Net, December 21, 2017 )
PREMIER DIAMOND GROUP (NORTH AMERICA) LTD.
Volume 2, No. 6
ONCE AGAIN A BLUE DIAMOND
STOLE THE SHOW AT AN AUCTION
Source: Rapaport, July 2016, Amber Michelle
This time it was Christie’s New York, where the Cullinan Dream sold for $25,365,000, or $1,050,000 per carat, against a presale estimate of $23 million to $29 million. It sold quickly and decisively to an anonymous buyer on the phone after a very brief bout of bidding.
A lovely sky blue, the stone weighs in at 24.18 carats. “It is one of the largest blue diamonds ever sold at auction,” noted Rahul Kadakia, international head of jewelry, Christie’s.
The Cullinan Dream is a natural fancy intense blue, VS2 clarity, type IIb, according to a grading report issued by the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) on February 26, 2016. The auction house described the diamond as the most expensive fancy intense blue diamond sold at auction. When on the finger, one sees a very pleasing color and sparkle that looks like sunshine on the ocean.
The diamond was cut from a 122.52-carat rough that was pulled out of the Cullinan mine in South Africa in 2014. “It was a very difficult stone in the rough. There were over 100 inclusions in the stone and the cutter in Israel spent several months planning the best way to cut the stone to get the best color and clarity,” explained Greg Stephenson, group head sales and marketing for Petra Diamonds, who was at the sale in New York. The time spent studying the stone and mapping it prior to cutting paid off, as there are no white-out zones or black spots, both of which are often found in http://premierdiamondltd.com">colored diamonds. The diamond has an even color saturation throughout the stone when viewed from any angle.
Petra, which owns and operates the Cullinan mine, retained a 15 percent stake in the stone. Stephenson noted that there are two more blue diamonds cut from the same rough that have not yet come to market.
Also on hand for the sale was jewelry dealer Mark Cullinan, great grandson of Sir Thomas Cullinan, who discovered the mine in 1898. “My great grandfather would be delighted to see how one of the newest exceptional blue diamonds from the mine he discovered resonates with top collectors today.”
ARGYLE PINK DIAMONDS TENDER
WORLD EXCLUSIVE PREVIEW IN COPENHAGEN
Rio Tinto’s spectacular 2016 Argyle Pink Diamonds Tender has been launched during a world exclusive preview in Copenhagen against the backdrop of a rare Argyle pink diamond jewelry exhibition.
The 2016 Argyle Pink Diamonds Tender includes 63 pink, red and violet diamonds and represents the finest of a year’s production from Rio Tinto’s Argyle diamond mine in Western Australia.
The 2016 Tender, named the “Chroma Collection” because of its potency of color, comprises 57 pink diamonds, two violet diamonds and four red diamonds and weighs a total of 58.24 carats.
The Argyle Violet, a 2.83 oval shaped violet diamond, is the dazzling centerpiece of the 2016 Argyle Pink Diamonds Tender. It is the largest violet diamond ever recovered from the Argyle mine – the only source of hydrogen—rich violet diamonds in the world. Violet diamonds are extremely rare – with just 12 carats of polished diamonds coming from the Argyle mine and included in the iconic Tender over 32 years.
Rio Tinto Diamonds & Minerals chief executive Alan Davies said “The 2016 Argyle Pink Diamonds Tender is an exceptional offering to the world’s most astute diamond collectors. The Chroma Collection is one of the finest we have ever seen across all rarity factors with an unprecedented spectrum of color, size and clarity. We are already seeing strong global interest from established and emerging markets.”
All the diamonds in the 2016 Argyle Pink Diamonds Tender have been recovered from the Argyle underground mine, which became fully operational in 2015.
Rio Tinto Diamonds managing director Simon Trott said “This year’s Argyle Pink Diamonds Tender is extraordinary and is testament to the unique Argyle orebody that continues to produce the world’s rarest gems.”
The collection comprises five “hero” diamonds selected for their unique beauty and named to ensure there is a permanent record of their contribution to the history of the world’s most important diamonds:
Lot 1: Argyle Violet: 2.83 carat oval shaped violet diamond
Lot 2: Argyle Ultra: 1.11 carat pear shaped violet diamond
Lot 3: Argyle Viva: 1.21 carat pear shaped Vivid purple-pink
diamond
Lot 4: Argyle Thea: 2.24 carat radiant cut Vivid purplish pink diamond
Lot 5: Argyle Aria: 1.09 carat oval shaped Fancy Red diamond
The world exclusive preview of the 2016 Argyle Pink Diamonds Tender was showcased in Copenhagen alongside a unique exhibition of rare pink diamond jewelry, in recognition of the importance of Denmark in the story of Australia’s most valuable gems. The exhibition was hosted by Denmark’s premier luxury jeweler Hartmann’s at the Moltkes Palace in Copenhagen. Following the Copenhagen exclusive preview, the 2016 Argyle Pink Diamonds Tender will be showcased during invitation-only viewings in Hong Kong, New York and Perth and bids will close on 12 October 2016.
A rare 2.83-carat violet diamond unearthed from Rio Tinto’s Argyle mine will be the centrepiece of its 2016 Argyle Pink Diamonds Tender. Named ‘Argyle Violet,’ the diamond was discovered in 2015 and cut from a 9.17-carat rough stone. It is the largest violet diamond recovered from that mine. “We are very excited to announce this historic diamond ahead of our tender launch,” said Argyle Pink Diamonds manager Josephine Johnson. “This stunning violet diamond will capture the imagination of the world’s leading collectors and connoisseurs.” More than 90 per cent of the world’s rare pink diamonds come from the Argyle mine, which is the only source of hydrogen-rich violet diamonds. These stones are seldom seen; Argyle has produced only 12 carats of polished violet diamonds for its tender in 32 years. Gemological Institute of America (GIA) has graded the ‘Argyle Violet’ as a fancy deep greyish-bluish violet. “Impossibly rare and limited by nature, the ‘Argyle Violet’ will be highly sought-after for its beauty, size, and provenance,” said Rio Tinto Diamonds general manager of sales, Patrick Coppens.
GREEN DIAMOND SHOWSTOPPER
Source: Rapaport, July 2016, Mary Kavanagh
Stones like the Aurora Green diamond do not appear on the market very often and this one happens to be the cream of the crop,” said Vickie Sek, deputy chairman Asia, director of jewelry and jadeite, Christie’s Asia, referencing the highlight of Christie’s 2016 spring Hong Kong Magnificent Jewels auction. “We expected it to fetch a top price and it did not disappoint,” she added. Not only did the 5.03-carat stone – the largest natural fancy vivid green diamond in the world, according to a Christie’s press release – fetch a top price, it set a new world auction price record for a green diamond at $16,818,981 or $3,343,733 per carat. The May 2016 sale achieved $60,676,998 in total. The 272 lots were 72 percent sold by lot and 73 percent sold by value. This compares to Christie’s autumn 2015 sale, which brought in a total of $96,904,062 and its spring 2015 sale, which achieved a total of $117,892,325, the highest total ever for any jewelry auction in Asia.
A Steller Purchase
The Aurora Green was bought by Chow Tai Fook (CTF), Hong Kong’s largest jewelry retailer by market value. “We are very happy it has been acquired by trade,” Sek said. “This is excellent proof that even top industry professionals agree with our judgement and share our confidence in this rare beauty.” This was not the first time CTF purchased a rare diamond. In 2010, they acquired a rare 507.55-carat rough diamond from the Cullinan diamond mine in South Africa and collaborated with Hong Kong jewelry artist, Wallace Chan, to create a unique necklace unveiled in September 2015. “We believe that the 5.03-carat superb colored diamond ring, set with a rectangular-cut fancy vivid green, VS2 diamond, is another piece of rare and precious jewelry with high collection value, after the purchase of the 507-carat Cullinan Heritage rough diamond in 2010,” a spokesperson for the company said. The previous record for a green diamond was set by Christie’s Geneva in mid-May of this year when the Ocean Dream, a 5.50-carat fancy vivid blue-green diamond, sold for $8,633,798, at $1,569,791 per carat.
Allure of Jadeite
Jadeite usually attracts a lot of attention in Asia, but as Sek pointed out, “At this sale it stood out even more.” The fifth top lot of the sale was a highly contested magnificent jadeite and diamond bracelet from “The Treasure of Burma,” a private collection from that country, which was bought by Moussaieff Jewelers for $1,945,288, a step above the high presale estimate of $1,647,890. In other top lots, a jadeite and diamond ring and a rare sapphire and diamond ring were also highly contested and both bought by private collectors. The fourth top lot of the sale was a jadeite bangle, which sold for $2,022,830, also to a private collector. A pair of double-hoop jadeite ear pendants that did not make the top ten list was an undisputed highlight of the evening. They sparked a very exciting and competitive bidding process, including lots of in-room bidding, before finally being sold to a private collector for $470,787, more than three times the high presale estimate of $150,000.
Top Ten
The top ten list featured diamonds, rubies, jadeite and a Colombian emerald. The second top lot of the evening was a Burmese ruby and diamond bracelet by Faidee, which was bought for $3,492,098, just below its presale estimate. Bidding was generally competitive throughout the sale and there was active participation among buyers in the packed auction room as well as by phone and online bidders. “The room was filled to the brim,” Sek said. “And even at the end, the room was still 70 percent full,” Sek added, noting the sale attracted 197 buyers from 19 countries across five continents.
Celebrating 30 Years in Asia
To mark its thirtieth anniversary in Asia, Christie’s organized a specially curated cross-category sale as part of its overall spring auction offering, which was 100 percent sold. Five handpicked jewelry lots, strongly featuring Hong Kong jewelers, were up for grabs. Three of them achieved new world records. A rare Art Deco sapphire and diamond bracelet by Cartier set with seven cushion-shaped Kashmir sapphires, from the former collection of Lillian S. Timken, a famous American collector and benefactor, achieved $7,260,957, setting a new world auction price for a bracelet. Hong Kong-based Etcetera’s Burmese oval-shaped ruby ear pendants, 10.02 carats and 9.09 carats, respectively, sold for $11,608,216 or $607,053 per carat, setting a new world auction record for a pair of ruby earrings. A unique jadeite and multigem pendant necklace by Wallace Chan was bought for $967,783 setting a new world auction record for one of his creations. The other two lots – a pair of diamond and emerald earrings by Etcetera and a jadeite and diamond pendant / brooch mounted by Carvin French – both achieved $2,478,973.
Magic
“The magic is in the curation,” Sek said. “Christie’s thirtieth anniversary is a very important milestone, and we were determined to put on a stunning show of the rarest and finest. Although we only had five lots, we tried to present an inclusive representation; the best in rubies, sapphires, emeralds and jadeite. Together they achieved almost $25,000,000. We couldn’t be more pleased with the results.”
Premier Diamond Group (North America) Lt
David Metcalfe
416-679-9306
info@premierdiamondltd.com
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