One of the world’s largest blue fancy colour diamonds, the Infinite Blue, has sold at Sotheby’s in Hong Kong for $US25.3 million ($AU39.78 million).
The 11.28-carat fancy vivid blue VS2 TypeIIB diamond is set in an 18-carat white and pink gold ring with a halo of pink and white diamonds.
It was something of a disappointing outcome at auction after narrowly missing its $US26 million ($AU40.88 million) presale estimate; however, it did achieve the third-highest return for a blue diamond in Asia.
The Infinite Blue is one of the few blue diamonds above 10 carats that have gone under the hammer and was discovered in the Cullinan Mine in South Africa.
Chairman of jewellery and watches for Sotheby’s Asia, Wenhao Yu, said that while the Infinite Blue may not have set any new records, demand for fancy colour diamonds remains strong.
“It’s been an honour to have been entrusted with the opportunity to offer a diamond of such breathtaking beauty, its price attesting to the resilient demand for top quality coloured diamonds amongst global collectors,” he said.
The most expensive blue diamonds sold at auction are the 15.10-carat De Beers Blue and the 14.6-carat Oppenheimer Blue, which both returned more than $US57 million ($AU90 million).
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