The “Aurora Green,” a 5.03-carat rectangular-cut fancy vivid green diamond smashed auction records Tuesday at Christie’s Hong Kong Magnificent Jewels sale.
The green diamond, with VS2 clarity mounted on a gold ring surrounded by circular-cut pink diamonds, sold for $16.8 million and for more than $3.3 million per carat, both world auction records.
The diamond was purchased by Hong Kong-based by Chow Tai Fook Jewellery Co LTD, one of the largest jewelry retailers in the world.
Despite the price being at the low end of its estimate, the diamond shattered the previous records for a green diamond, which was set earlier this month for “The Ocean Dream,” a 5.5-carat fancy vivid blue-green diamond that sold for $8.6 million ($1.5 million per carat).
The Aurora Green was the top lot of the sale and one of four lots that set world auction records. The sale totaled more than $85 million with 10 lots exceeding more than $1 million. Colored diamonds, colored gems, jadeite and white diamond were among the top lots. A total of 72 percent of items were sold by lot and 73 percent by value.
The sale attracted 197 buyers from 19 countries across five continents.
The three other items that set auction records are as follows:
* Burmese oval-shaped ruby ear pendants of 10.02 and 9.09 carets by Etcetera sold for $11.6 million ($607,053 per caret), a world auction record for a pair of ruby earrings.
* An Art Deco sapphire and diamond bracelet by Cartier sold for $7.2 million, a world auction record for a bracelet.
* A multi-gem pendant necklace by Wallace Chan sold for $967,164, a world auction record for a jewel by Wallace Chan.
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