Blue Moon Diamond Set to Break all the Records at Auction

Blue Moon Diamond Set to Break all the Records at Auction

Update – Blue Moon Diamond Sells For $48.5 Million

The Blue Moon Diamond is set to break all the records at an auction later in the year on 11th November by selling for $55 million. According to the Sotheby’s house of international auction, the rare gem of 12 carats will be sold at a jewelry auction in Geneva, Switzerland. The gem comes in the shape of a cushion.

It is expected to be the world’s most expensive blue diamond if it sells at the anticipated price; it will beat the $32.6 million the Zoe Diamond sold for in 2014. According to Sotheby, the diamond must sell for at least $46.2 million in order to set a new world price record.

With an origin in South Africa, the Blue Moon Diamond has been termed ‘internally flawless’ and ‘fancy vivid blue’ by the American Gemological Institute; the highest blue diamond color grading by the institute. According to Sotheby, the ‘once in a blue moon’ idiom commonly used, is in reference to the Blue Moon Diamond that is rare and clear.

The gem was discovered in South Africa’s Cullinan mine last year and initially weighed 29.93 carats before undergoing transformation. Located only 45 minutes away from Pretoria, the Cullinan mine is famous for its volcanic pipe in the shape of a carrot. It is also the major source of the rare blue diamonds, globally.

Although the mine is currently run by a 3-way consortium comprising of the Thembinkosi Mining Investments, the Petra Diamonds and the Al Rajhi Holdings, an investment firm based in Saudi Arabia, the mine was initially under the management of the DeBeers Diamond Conglomerate for 18 good years.

In the next two to four decades, the mine is expected to produce about 1,000,000 carats annually. Over 25% of diamonds worldwide worth more than 400 carats come from this mine in South Africa.

Although the Blue Moon Diamond’s anticipated cost has been highly priced, Sotheby has sold several other notable diamonds of color at a range of $16 million to $30 million.

According to the jewelry division of Sotheby International’s global chairman, David Bennett, the gemstone has perfect purity and color, dubbing it as ‘magical and sensational’. He states that, “Blue for me is the most mysterious and magical of all diamond colors. This one will now take its place among the most famous gems in the world.”

The Blue Moon Diamond, according to Bennett, is so rare that its discovery can only happen once in a lifetime. It is a remarkably magnificent gemstone and the demand for these rare gems is always on the increase.

 

Blue Moon Diamond Sells For $48.5 Million Setting A New Record

Last month we spoke about a very rare vivid blue Diamond that was going to auction which was set to break all of the previous records. Well last night in Geneva the stunning 12.03cts blue Diamond went under the hammer for a final price of $48.5 Million USD. That breaks the previous record set by the Graff Pink Diamond which sold for $46.2 Million USD.

The Blue Moon Diamond was named so because if it’s rarity. The expression “once in blue moon” was used to describe this stunning stone. The Blue moon Diamond was main attraction at the auction in Geneva which was packed full of potential buyers. The final price of the gem fell within the auction estimate ($35 – $55 Million). It was a special day for the auction house which was reflected by the loud applause from within the auction house as the hammer fell, a rarity in such places.

The Blue moon Diamond sold to a private collector in Hong Kong via a phone link up. As with all of these highly prized gemstone the new owner is able to rename it. The buyer promptly renamed it to “The Blue Moon of Josephine”. What is interesting is that just yesterday another pink Diamond which sold to a Hong Kong collector was renamed to “Sweet Josephine”. The buyer has not been publicly identified so we can only assume it is the same person. Either way, Joesphine is one lucky girl.

Blue Diamonds are one of the rarest gemstones on earth and to find one with such clarity and vivid blue colour is indeed very rare. Who knows how long this new record will hold for, perhaps in the future we will see someone selling the The Blue Moon of Josephine once more.