https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A2kufsFQn7k
After just three minutes and 55 seconds of bidding, Sotheby’s Auctioneer Lisa Hubbard brought down the hammer Tuesday on Lot 357 — a 100.2-carat diamond mined in Southern Africa, NYPost reports.
The emerald-cut mega stone, considered flawless, was bought by an anonymous bidder who beat out two other gem lovers in serious contention after 14 offers had been made.
Presale estimates had the diamond going for $19 million to $25 million, according to CNN.
Bidding started at $12 million, and the offer stood at $19.5 million when Hubbard — who is chairwoman of North and South America for Sotheby’s International Jewelry Division –closed the bids. The final price tag, including the buyer’s premium, was $22.09 million, NYPost reports.
An internally flawless diamond, this was the largest of its clarity and cut ever shown at auction, CNN reports.
In the rough, the diamond weighed more than 200 carats. It was mined within the last 10 years by De Beers in Southern Africa, and refined for more than a year before arriving at its current size and emerald cut.
The owner asked to remain anonymous, NYDailyNews reported.
The color D, white diamond went on a six-city exhibition tour that included stops in London, Hong Kong and Dubai, before ending in New York where it will be the main attraction at Southeby’s New York’s Magnificent Jewels auction, according to CNN.
“This 100.20-carat diamond is the definition of perfection. The color is whiter than white. It is free of any internal imperfections,” Sotheby’s New York jewelry department head Gary Schuler said in a statement, according to NYDailyNews. He likened its transparency “to a pool of icy water.”
Just five other flawless diamonds of 100 carats or more have ever been sold at auction, including an 118.28-carat oval diamond that sold for $30.6 million at a Sotheby’s Hong Kong auction in 2013, according to Sotheby’s, CNN reports.
The record for any jewel sold at auction was set at Sotheby’s in 2010 — $46 million for a 24.78-carat emerald-cut pink stone, NYDailyNews reports.
