February 2, 2010 – The Wittelsbach-Graff diamond, one of the world’s most valuable gemstones, was unveiled by Laurence Graff, Chairman and founder of Graff Diamonds, at The Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History in Washington DC on January 28.
The diamond will be on display until August, 2010.
The 31.06 carat Wittelsbach-Graff diamond has been certified as a type 11b Internally Flawless, Natural Fancy Deep Blue diamond and is the largest such stone graded to date by the Gemological Institute of America.
Laurence Graff called the purchase in December 2008 the climax of his career and immediately decided that he would re-polish the stone to allow it to achieve its full potential by bringing to it more life and colour.
“The diamond had many imperfections. Besides wear marks it was chipped and it had an extra large culet,” he said.
“Although the risk was enormous, I had all the confidence I needed in my craftsmen to deliver a more magnificent and beautiful stone. To have this historical stone displayed at the Smithsonian will represent another significant chapter in its remarkable history.”
