The World’s Most Expensive Coloured Diamonds
Natural fancy colour diamonds are admired for their exquisite abundance of colour in any imaginable hue. On the other hand, white or colourless diamonds valued for their lack of colour.
In this article, we come up with the top 10 most expensive coloured diamonds in the world range from canary yellow to exceedingly rare red, blue, and green. These priceless gems demand exorbitant prices due to their unprecedented scale, rarity, and stunning hues.
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Wittelsbach-Graff Diamond ($24.3 million)
The original Wittelsbach Diamond
Discovered initially as Wittelsbach Diamond in India in the mid-1600s, it weighed more than 35 carats and was once part of the Bavarian and Austrian crown jewels. Laurence Graff, an English jeweller, paid $24.3 million (R367 million) for it in 2008. After extracting some defects and four carats of this Fancy Deep Blue Diamond, Graff renamed it the Wittelsbach-Grafflater.
The 9.75-carat Fancy Vivid Blue Zoe Diamond
One of the most expensive blue diamond’s globally, Fancy vivid Blue Zoe Diamond is 9.75-carat in weight. Although many famous and valuable diamonds have a well-documented history and discovery date, Zoe Diamond's origins are shrouded in mystery.
The beautiful pear-shaped diamond was sold for $32.6 million (R500 million) in November 2014 at Sotheby's New York. With this price, it set a record price by shattering its estimate of $15 million. Is the $3.3 million per carat not a surprising rise in its price at the time?
It was bought by Joseph Lau, a Hong Kong estate tycoon and private collector, for his daughter Zoe. The Blue Moon Diamond (see below), which Lau also owns, knocked the Zoe diamond off its record-holding podium in 2015.
The Orange Diamond ($35 million)
Largest Fancy Vivid Orange Diamond
"The Orange," diamond with 14.82-carat weight and pear shape, is the world's largest Fancy Vivid Orange Diamond ever sold at auction. In November 2013, when it sold for $35 million (R528 million) at Christie's Geneva Magnificent Jewels sale, it smashed the world record – (R218 million) above its estimate.
Graff Pink Diamond ($46 million)
Graff Pink Diamond
The Graff Pink Diamond (number four on our list) is a 24.78-carat emerald-cut diamond that rivals the Pink Star Diamond (number four). Laurence Graff, the current owner of this Fancy Intense Pink Diamond, is the reason behind Fancy Intense Pink Diamond's name. He bought the diamond for a massive $46 million (R694 million) at a Sotheby's auction in Geneva in 2010.
Blue Moon of Josephine Diamond ($48,5 million)
The Blue Moon, named due to its rarity.
Discovered in January 2014 in South Africa's Cullinan mine; the mine famous for producing Cullinan Diamond is the Blue Moon diamond's creative place. Giving it a flawless look by cutting and polishing it into a 12.03-carat took six months.
This spectacular Fancy Vivid Blue diamond, originally called the Blue Moon (as a tribute to its peculiarity), was sold for a staggering $48.5 million (R732 million) at the Magnificent Jewels and Noble Jewels auction in Geneva in 2015 – over $4 million per carat.
Joseph Lau, a Hong Kong billionaire, bought it and renamed it after the name of his 7-year-old daughter as "The Blue Moon of Josephine". Before its purchase, Lau had bought a 16.08-carat vivid pink diamond for $28.5 million (R430 million). He had renamed it "Sweet Josephine".
Oppenheimer Blue Diamond ($57 million)
Fancy Vivid Blue emerald cut diamond
Oppenheimer Blue Diamond, a 14.62-carat diamond, is named after Sir Phillip Oppenheimer, its previous owner. An anonymous buyer purchased it in 2016 at the worth of $57 million (861 million) in an auction. Before Pink Star Diamond's sale in 2017, Fancy Vivid Blue emerald cut diamond was known as the most expensive jewel ever sold at auction.
Pink Star Diamond ($71 million)
The Pink Star Diamond
The finest and the largest diamond with a Fancy vivid pink is the "The Pink Star Diamon." Previously, it was famous as the Steinmetz Pink. 1999 was the year in which it was mined in South Africa with 132.5 carats in crude form. However, it took 20 months to cut it and give it the most refined shape. In May 2003, it was unwrapped in a public ceremony in Monaco May 2003.
Among the pink diamond class, it has 3rd rank due to its size and colour. Not only this,
At the 2017 Sotheby's auction in Hong Kong, the oval-shaped 59.6-carat pink diamond set was sold at the record highest price ever paid for a gem, which was an unprecedented $71 million (R1 billion).
One of the most famous and notorious diamonds in the world.
Hope Diamond one of the notorious diamonds in the world; it is as exquisite as it's precious. Since the diamond is said to be cursed, it has a long history of mystery and exciting stories.
The 45.52-carat blue-grey Hope Diamond believed to have been found in India in the 1600s. And it's currently preserved in high security at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History.
The diamond is regarded as the world's second-most-visited work of art, "followed by "Mona Lisa." The Hope Diamond is the world's third most valuable coloured diamond, with a price tag of $250 million (R3.7 billion).
Ocean Dream Diamond (Value Unknown)
Ocean Dream Diamond
The Ocean Dream Diamond, found in central Africa, is the first and only natural diamond with a blue-green hue. Given its small size (5.50 carats), this unique diamond is one of the world's rarest and most precious gems.
Exposure to natural radiation for millions of years is considered to be the reason for its stunning and unique colour. Its exceptional and one-of-a-kind colour is thought to have arisen from millions of years of exposure to natural radiation. The Ocean Dream, a triangular brilliant (or trillion-cut) diamond, is currently owned by the Cora Diamond Company and was exhibited alongside other famous diamonds in the Smithsonian's "The Splendor of Diamonds" exhibit in 2003.
Spirit of de Grisogono Diamond (value unknown)
This isn't the end of the list. The Pumpkin Diamond ($3 million), Moussaieff Red Diamond ($7 million), de Grisogono Green Diamond ($7.3 million), yellow Sun-Drop Diamond ($10.9 million), 10 Heart of Eternity Fancy Vivid Blue Diamond ($16 million), Graff Vivid Yellow Diamond ($16.3 million), and the Incomparable Diamond ($20 million) are all precious coloured diamonds.
The largest cut black diamond in the world
The Spirit of de Grisogono, weighing 312.24 carats, is the world's largest cut black diamond. When it comes to its cut, it’s the fifth-largest diamond. It was discovered several decades ago in Africa and weighed an incredible 587 carats in rough form. It was eventually set in a white gold mounting by Swiss jeweller De Grisogono and surrounded by 702 white diamonds. As a result, it becomes 36.69 carats in weight. However, it’s worth has not been revealed.
Other Valuable Coloured Diamonds
Polished round brilliant cut diamonds
This isn't the end of the list. The Pumpkin Diamond ($3 million), Moussaieff Red Diamond ($7 million), de Grisogono Green Diamond ($7.3 million), yellow Sun-Drop Diamond ($10.9 million), 10 Heart of Eternity Fancy Vivid Blue Diamond ($16 million), Graff Vivid Yellow Diamond ($16.3 million), and the Incomparable Diamond ($20 million) are all extremely valuable coloured diamonds.