Blue diamond prices – Page 3 – The Diamond Certification Laboratory of Australia (DCLA)

Rare Rough Blue Diamonds

Recovered from the famous Cullinan Mine in South Africa, these blue diamonds are among the world’s most expensive

Five blue diamonds have been recovered from Petra Diamonds’ famous Cullinan mine in South Africa.

They are among the world’s most expensive diamonds, and were formed deep within the Earth about 400 miles below the surface, which is four times as deep as white diamonds. The element boron, which is what gives the stones their blue colour, combines with carbon and crystallises under extreme pressure and heat.

The sales tender for the five Type IIb blue diamonds will close later this month, on November 24, following viewings in Antwerp, Hong Kong and New York. They weigh 25.75, 21.25, 17.57, 11.42 and 9.61 carats, respectively.

Type II diamonds contain no detectable nitrogen in their chemical structure, which means they boast exceptional transparency.

Blue diamonds are so rare that most people, even in the jewellery industry, never have a chance to see one. It’s incredibly unusual that these five diamonds were all recovered within the space of one week’s production in September.

Their birthplace, the Cullinan mine, is one of the most important sources of blue diamonds. It’s also the origin of the 3,106 carat Cullinan diamond, which was cut to form the 530 carat Great Star of Africa and the 317 carat Second Star of Africa, which are set into the British Crown Jewels.

It’s the first time that five rough blue diamonds have been offered for sale at the same time. In 2013, a 25.5 carat blue diamond was sold by Petra Diamonds for over US$16.9 million.

Source: asiatatler

Petra to sell blue diamonds recovered at Cullinan

A 20.08-carat Type IIb blue diamond recovered at Cullinan.

Petra Diamonds (LON: PDL) announced the launching of a special tender process for the Letlapa Tala Collection, which comprises five blue diamonds sourced from the Cullinan mine in South Africa.

Cullinan is known as the world’s most important source of blue diamonds, as well as being the place of birth of the 3,106-carat Cullinan diamond, which was cut to form the 530-carat Great Star of Africa and the 317-carat Second Star of Africa, being the two largest diamonds in the British Crown Jewels.

In a press release, Petra said that the name of the new collection actually means ‘blue rock’ in Northern Sotho (commonly known as Pedi), the predominant language spoken in the Cullinan area.

CULLINAN IS KNOWN AS THE WORLD’S MOST IMPORTANT SOURCE OF BLUE DIAMONDS

The collection consists of five Type IIb blue diamonds of 25.75, 21.25, 17.57, 11.42 and 9.61 carats, respectively. Type II diamonds contain no detectable nitrogen in their chemical structure and tend to display exceptional transparency. Type IIb stones contain a small amount of boron, which is what determines their blue colour.

“Blue diamonds are so rare that most people working in the diamond industry have never even seen one,” the media release states. “There are no official statistics on their recovery, so it is therefore even more unusual that these five spectacular stones were all recovered within the space of one week’s production in September 2020.”

According to Petra, this is likely to be the first time that five blue rough diamonds have ever been offered for sale at one time, with buyers being offered the chance to bid either on individual stones, more than one, or for the entire collection.

The Letlapa Tala gems will be available for viewings in Antwerp from October 25 to November 1; Hong Kong from November 5 to November 10; and New York from November 16 to November 20, 2020.

Source: Mining.com

Petra Diamonds recovers five rare large high-quality blue diamonds at Cullinan Mine

South Africa’s Petra Diamonds, which put itself up for sale in June, announced on Wednesday it had found five high-quality blue diamonds, but toned down the news by saying the discovery won’t help turn around its fortunes.

Petra, which has been hit by a triple whammy of weak market conditions, power emergencies in the home country and covid-19, found the Type IIb blue diamonds at its flagship Cullinan mine.

The high quality stones, in terms of both their colour and clarity, range in size from 9.6 carats to 25.8 carats, the company said.

The miner didn’t indicate the diamonds’ potential value but said it is considering sale options.

“These finds, whilst a positive development, will not have a material impact on the likely terms of the required long-term solution to improve the group’s capital structure, nor the significant level of equity dilution that existing shareholders are likely to experience in connection with its implementation,” Petra said in the statement.

The company also warned that measures to improve its capital structure could result in significant equity dilution.

Blue stones are among the rarest and most valuable and have lately fetched higher prices than white diamonds. Last year, Petra sold a 20.08-carat blue gem for $14.9 million, or about $741,000 per carat.

“Flexible” approach to sales
Petra was already struggling when the covid-19 pandemic added further pressure to a sector that was just beginning to show some green shots.

The miner tried in 2019 to turn around its fortunes after piling up debt to expand its flagship Cullinan mine in South Africa. The renowned mine, where the world’s largest-ever diamond was found in 1905, produces about a quarter of the world’s gem-quality diamonds. It is also the source of the vast majority of blue stones.

In May, Petra failed to make an interest payment on a $650 million bond, but won some breathing space from creditors who said they would not declare a default until August.

The diamond producer also cancelled May and June tenders because of travel restrictions and low demand from the midstream. While it originally expected to hold a tender in September, Petra said it was still evaluating the optimal route to market for the stones it mines. It added it would release further information to its customer base once a decision about the marketing plan to follow had been made.

For now, the company is taking a “flexible” approach to selling diamonds in light of ongoing travel restrictions triggered by the global pandemic.

Despite the numerous challenges, Petra is targeting a ramp-up to pre-covid-19 production levels. It added it will disclose production targets for 2021 once it reaches a “sustainable level of operational stability.”

Three exceptional diamonds sell at auctions.

A fancy vivid pink Diamond and a fancy vivid blue diamond

The first a heart shaped gem was a 5.04 carat fancy vivid blue heart modified brilliant cut diamond with VS2 clarity. The stone is mounted on a platinum ring flanked by two pear-shaped diamonds. It achieved more than $10.5 million USD, making it the top lot at the Sotheby’s auction.

The second was a 4.49 carat heart modified brilliant cut, internally flawless, fancy vivid pink diamond. It’s mounted on an 18k white gold ring flanked by pear shaped diamonds. It achieved more than $8.1 million USD. at the high end of its estimate, making it the number three lot of the sale.

The buyer or buyers for both lots is unknown at this time and there is no indication whether a single person purchased both fancy colored diamonds.

A 12.11 carat fancy intense blue diamond sold for $15.9 million USD at Christie’s Hong Kong Magnificent Jewels auction. The internally flawless marquise shaped, brilliant cut gem was sold during a long, drawn out bidding process that was gradually narrowed down to two phone bidders, as seen through the auction house’s live stream.

It blew past its $12.3 million high estimate with a hammer price of $13.6 million which doesn’t include the buyer’s premium. The price per carat was $1.31 million.

$14M Blue Diamond to Headline Christie’s Geneva

A fancy deep blue diamond ring with a high estimate of CHF 14 million will go under the hammer at Christie’s Geneva Magnificent Jewels auction next month.

The 7.03 carat stone, mounted by Moussaieff, will lead the November auction, Christie’s said Thursday. Another prominent lot is a 46.93 carat, D color, internally flawless diamond ring, which is expected to fetch CHF 3.8 million to 4.5 million.

Christie’s will also offer a 42.97 carat Burmese sapphire pendant, valued at up to CHF 3 million, and a pair of untreated Colombian emerald earrings, each weighing over 7.5 carats, with a presale estimate of CHF 1 million to 1.5 million.

Other items on offer include a rare Belle Époque brooch, dated circa 1910, which was procured by the Australian opera singer Dame Nellie Melba at the height of her career. The turquoise and diamond piece is valued at CHF 250,000 to CHF 350,000.

The sale also encompasses several Art Deco pieces from Cartier. Three brooches, formerly in the collection of Countess Béatrice of Granard OBE, have a high presale estimate of CHF 220,000. A diamond Cartier bandeau, which can also be worn as a choker, two bracelets and a brooch, is valued at up to CHF 500,000.

Highlights from the collection are available for viewing at Christie’s London on October 22 and 23, and at the Four Seasons Hotel des Bergues, Geneva, from November 7 to 12.

Source: Diamonds.net