Pink Diamond Ring

6.17-ct Fancy Pink could Fetch $1.8m

A 6.17-carat fancy pink diamond is expected to fetch up to $1.8m in an online auction.

The Angelina belonged to Willa Dean Lyon, wife of Maj Gen William Lyon, and was named after their granddaughter.

Maj Gen Lyon was a successful businessman and real estate magnate from Southern California who built over 100,000 homes across the US. He died in 2020, aged 97. His wife died last year, aged 92.

The VVS2 oval modified brilliant diamond is set in an 18k white and rose gold ring, with about 1.00-cts of near-colorless diamonds.

It is being sold by Heritage Auctions, based in Dallas, as part of its Holiday Fine Jewelry Signature Auction, which closes on 3 December. The estimate is $1.2m to $1.8m.

According to the Fancy Color Research Foundation (FCRF), fancy pinks have appreciated by roughly 116 per cent over the past decade, outpacing all other fancy color categories for their investment potential.

Source: IDEX

6.95-Carat Pink Diamond to Headline Vanderbilt Family Jewels Auction in Geneva

A spectacular 6.95-carat fancy vivid purplish pink Golconda diamond will lead The Geneva Jewels Auction: V, as Phillips Geneva prepares to offer an extraordinary collection of jewels once owned by the legendary Vanderbilt family, once America’s richest dynasty.

Among the highlights is a Tiffany & Co. 42.68-carat sugarloaf Kashmir sapphire and diamond brooch, estimated at US$1 million to US$1.5 million, alongside a step-cut Kashmir sapphire and diamond ring weighing 18.09 carats (estimate US$2.2 million to US$2.8 million). The sale also features a stunning pair of brilliant-cut diamond ear studs, weighing 8.00 and 8.28 carats, both graded D colour, VVS1 clarity, with an estimate of US$600,000 to US$850,000.

The Vanderbilt name is synonymous with immense wealth and American industrial power. The family’s fortune began with Cornelius Vanderbilt, who, at age 16, borrowed $100 from his mother to start a ferry service in 1810. He later built a shipping and railroad empire that made him the richest man in the United States, worth about $100 million at his death in 1877 — equivalent to at least $185 billion today.

His son, William Henry Vanderbilt, further doubled that fortune to over $200 million (around $370 billion in today’s terms). However, the family’s wealth gradually dispersed over subsequent generations, with the combined net worth of the Vanderbilt descendants now estimated at around $200 million.

The Geneva Jewels Auction: V, featuring The Vanderbilt Family Jewels, will take place on 10 November at Phillips Geneva, marking a rare opportunity for collectors to acquire pieces linked to one of America’s most storied families.

The Kao Legend Collection: A Rare Suite of Pink Diamonds from Lesotho

The Kao Legend Collection represents an extraordinary achievement in diamond cutting and curation. Cut from a single 108.39-carat pink diamond crystal unearthed at the renowned Kao Mine in Lesotho, this suite features seven magnificent pink diamonds each documented in detail by the GIA Monograph.

At the heart of the collection lies the Kao Legend, a 20.49-carat diamond graded Fancy Intense Purplish Pink by the Gemological Institute of America (GIA). The accompanying diamonds in the collection range in colour from Fancy Intense Purplish Pink to Faint Pink, showcasing a delicate and rare spectrum of pink hues.

What sets this collection apart is not only its shared origin and harmonious beauty but also the diamonds’ classification. All seven are Type IIa diamonds known for their exceptional chemical purity and rarity, comprising less than 2% of all natural diamonds. Type IIa pink diamonds are especially coveted for their remarkable clarity and vibrant colour saturation.

The Kao Mine, one of Lesotho’s most prominent diamond sources, has established a reputation for yielding high-quality pink diamonds. Alongside the Kao Legend, the mine also produced the celebrated Pink Eternity, a 47.80-carat gem of international acclaim.

For gemmologists and collectors alike, the Kao Legend Collection exemplifies nature’s artistry and the pinnacle of diamond excellence.

Auction House Pulls Fake Pink Diamond from Sale

A leading auction house was shocked to discover a pink diamond it planned to sell was actually a fake.

The gem was sent to the Institute of Diamonds – the De Beers diamond grading and verification division – ahead of the sale.

It was examined there and found to be a forgery, De Beers CEO Al Cook said in a LinkedIn post to his 42,500 followers.

“At first glance, the stone looks beautiful. It even has an inscription on the side which claims its a diamond,” he said.

But a combination of experts and sophisticated detection machines confirmed the stone was not actually diamond.

“As soon as our team looked at the stone, they suspected it was a fake,” said Cook in a follow-up to his original post.

“The certification inscription on the side had led the auction house to believe it was real.”

He also said: “Our team was quite excited to see this extraordinary stone and actually very sad when it turned out to be a fake.

“Luckily the fraud was stopped before an auction customer paid a vast sum of money!”

Cook didn’t provide further details, and De Beers declined to elaborate.

In his original post Cook said: “Henry Smith from our Institute of Diamonds confirmed that this pink stone was a forgery. ‘It had even been lasered with a fake inscription’.

“Henry explained that the auction house was shocked, but ‘cases like this emphasise the critical role of advanced detection technologies’.”

Cook also said in his post that De Beers was ramping up production of DiamondProof, the verification device aimed specifically at retailers that was showcased at JCK last year and which is now available in the US.

He said it can distinguish a natural diamond from a lab-grown or moissanite in a few seconds.

Source: IDEX

Guilty: Deloitte Director Bought Pink Diamonds on Company Credit Card

A former director of the Deloitte auditing company in Australia has admitted claiming almost AUD 2.8m ($1.8m) in fraudulent work expenses to buy pink diamonds, high-end art and other luxuries.

Paul Quill, 45, used his corporate credit card to make the purchases from 2016 to 2022, passing some of them off as payments for stationary, postage, photocopying and court fees. He admitted two counts of obtaining financial advantage by deception.

The County Court of Victoria, in Melbourne, heard last Thursday (27 March) that among the sums stolen was AUD 682,587 ($429,000) from Joe Gutnick’s Merlin Diamonds, the mining company that was wound up in 2020 after a series of losses.

The court heard that Quill lost control after the breakdown of a relationship. He will be sentenced on 15 April.

He was dismissed in 2022 after his crime was revealed during a routine audit. Deloitte said at the time that it would make sure all clients were repaid in full.

Source: IDEX

Pink Diamond Ring Headlines Heritage Sale

A 3.06-carat pink diamond ring will be the star of an upcoming jewelry sale at Heritage Auctions, where it is set to fetch as much as $300,000.

The modified marquise-shaped, fancy-pink stone, surrounded by 0.55 carats of full-cut diamonds, will lead the December 4 Holiday Fine Jewelry Signature Auction in Dallas, Texas, Heritage said Monday.

Other standout items include pieces by Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels, and Tiffany & Co., and diamond earrings created in 1950 by Parisian jeweler Jean Schlumberger. One of the more interesting lots is an enamel and 18-karat gold helicopter by Pierno Frascarolo & Co.

Here are some of the other top items:

*A ring by designer David Webb features a pear-shaped, 18.65-carat Ceylon purple sapphire, 9.35 carats of full-cut diamonds and a turquoise cabochon, estimated at up to $80,000.*

*An emerald-cut, 4.62-carat, H-color, VS1-clarity diamond ring is expected to fetch up to $75,000 at the auction.*

This ring is set with a cut-cornered rectangular-cut, 5.57-carat, fancy-intense-yellow, VS1-clarity diamond center stone, flanked by tapered bullet-shaped white diamonds and rectangular-shaped emeralds. It carries a presale price range of $50,000 to $75,000.

*Heritage will offer this cushion-shaped, 19.51-carat sapphire and diamond ring for $50,000 to $70,000.*

Source: Rapnet