Sotheby’s Geneva to offer “The Raj Pink”
GENEVA, October 2017 – Sotheby’s is offering for sale “The Raj Pink”, the world’s largest known Fancy Intense Pink diamond, weighing 37.30 carats, during its sale of Magnificent Jewels and Noble Jewels in Geneva, on 15 November 2017. The diamond has a pre-sale estimate of $20-30 million.
“The discovery of any pink diamond is exceptional, but the Raj Pink’s remarkable size and intensity of colour places it in the rarefied company of the most important pink diamonds known,” said David Bennett, Worldwide Chairman of Sotheby’s International Jewellery Division.
The rough diamond which yielded ‘The Raj Pink’ was studied for over a year after its discovery in 2015. It was then entrusted to a master cutter, who brought the diamond’s innermost beauty to full display by crafting it into a sparkling cushion-modified brilliant cut. ‘The Raj Pink’ was named by the current owner of the diamond, who wishes to remain anonymous. It is based on the Sanskrit word for ‘king’.
The Gemological Institute of America (GIA), which certified the diamond, characterized it as an “astonishing stone”, describing its hue as “a very bright and ravishing fancy intense pink color”.
It continued, “For a diamond to display strong, unmodified pink color like that observed in The Raj Pink is rare, particularly at so considerable a weight”.
The discovery of a gem-quality pink diamond of any size is an extremely rare occurrence. Of all diamonds submitted to the GIA each year, less than 0.02% are predominantly pink.
