Pink Star (diamond)
Weight | 59.60 carats (11.920 g) |
---|---|
Color | Fancy Vivid Pink |
Cut | Mixed Oval Brilliant (step cut crown, brilliant cut pavilion) |
Discovered | 1999; unveiled 29 May 2003 |
Owner | Isaac Wolf[1] |
Estimated value | US$83.2 million (November 2013) |
The Pink Star, formerly known as the Steinmetz Pink,[2] is a diamond weighing 59.60 carat (11.92 g), rated in color as Fancy Vivid Pink by the Gemological Institute of America. The Pink Star was mined by De Beers in 1999 in South Africa, and weighed 132.5 carat in the rough.[2] The Pink Star is the largest known diamond having been rated Vivid Pink. As a result of this exceptional rarity, the Steinmetz Group took a cautious 20 months to cut the Pink. It was unveiled in Monaco on 29 May 2003 in a public ceremony.
The Pink Star was displayed (as the Steinmetz Pink) as part of the Smithsonian's "The Splendor of Diamonds" exhibit, alongside the De Beers Millennium Star, the world’s second largest (the Centenary Diamond is the largest) top colour (D) internally and externally flawless pear-shaped diamond at 203.04 carat (40.608 g), the Heart of Eternity Diamond, a 27.64 carat (5.582 g) heart-cut blue diamond and the Moussaieff Red Diamond, the world's largest known Fancy Red diamond at 5.11 carat (1.022 g).
2013 auction
In 2013 the Pink Star was auctioned by Sotheby's Geneva on 13 November 2013. The sale price was USD 83,187,381 (GBP 52,000,000, CHF 68,000,000), a world record for a diamond of any colour and, indeed, for any gemstone.[3] Prior to the sale the record had been held by the Graff Pink. The Pink Star was bought by New York diamond cutter Isaac Wolf who renamed it The Pink Dream.[1][2] however, according to Forbes magazine,[4] the auction price has so far not been settled by the buyer and the stone has now been added to the Sotheby's inventory. As of May 2016 the diamond was still with Sotheby's, as the 2013 buyer could not afford the price.[5]
Names
- 1999–2007: The Steinmetz Pink
- 2007–present: The Pink Star
See also
- List of diamonds
- Graff Pink (diamond); prior to the November 2013 auction the most expensive diamond of any color to be sold at auction.
References
- ^ a b Bennett, David (13 November 2013). "'The Pink Dream': An Auction Record for Any Jewel". Sotheby’s. Retrieved 14 November 2013.
- ^ a b c "Diamond to be sold by Sotheby's at record price of $60m". BBC News. 25 September 2013. Retrieved 25 September 2013.
- ^ "Pink Star diamond fetches record $83m at auction". BBC News, Business. BBC. Retrieved 14 November 2013.
- ^ http://www.forbes.com/sites/anthonydemarco/2014/03/01/the-83-million-pink-diamond-default/
- ^ http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-36326682
- Gemological Institute of America. "The Steinmetz Pink". Retrieved 13 April 2005.
- Smithsonian Museum of Natural History. "The Splendor of Diamonds". Retrieved 13 April 2005.
- The World of Famous Diamonds. "The Steinmetz Pink".