The Rock’s pre-sale estimate was 19 to 30 million Swiss francs.
Geneva:
The Rock, the largest white diamond ever auctioned, was sold on Wednesday for a hammer price of 18.6 million Swiss francs ($18.8 million), far below the record for such jewelry.
A 228.31-carat stone larger than a golf ball was sold by Christie’s auction house in Geneva.
There was much hope that The Rock would break the world record for a white diamond, valued at $33.7 million, which was brought to the Swiss city in 2017 for a 163.41-carat gem.
The bid, which started at 14 million francs, stopped after two minutes at 18.6 million, although the price would increase after adding taxes and buyer’s premium.
Pre-sales were estimated at 19 to 30 million Swiss francs.
The Rock, a perfectly symmetrical pear-shaped diamond, was in the hands of an unnamed owner in North America. It was bought by a telephone bidder following the action at the Htel des Burgess.
Max Fawcett, head of the jewelry department at Christie’s auction house in Geneva, said there were only a few diamonds of the same size and quality as The Rock.
The large diamond was extracted from a mine in South Africa in the early 2000s and has been shown in Dubai, Taipei and New York before being sold in Geneva.
red cross gems
Later on sale at the Magnificent Jewel Auction is a historic intense yellow diamond that has been associated with the Red Cross for over a century.
The Red Cross Diamond is a cushion-shaped, 205.07-carat canary yellow jewel, valued at seven to 10 million Swiss francs ($7.09 to $10.13 million).
A substantial portion of the proceeds will be donated to the International Committee of the Red Cross, which is headquartered in Geneva.
The original rough stone was found in 1901 at the De Beers Company’s quarry in South Africa and is said to have weighed about 375 carats.
As well as ranking among the largest diamonds in the world, a striking feature is its pavilion, which naturally takes the shape of a Maltese cross.
The stone was first put up for sale at Christie’s in London on April 10, 1918. It was introduced by the Diamond Syndicate in aid of the British Red Cross Society and the Order of St.
The Red Cross Diamond fetched £10,000 – approximately £600,000 ($740,000) in today’s money. It was bought by London-based jewelers SJ Phillips.
It was resold by Christie’s in Geneva in 1973, fetching 1.8 million Swiss francs, and is now being offered by the auction house for the third time.
Also being sold is a tiara that belonged to Princess Irma of Fürstenberg (1867–1948), one of the most pre-eminent aristocratic families of the Habsburg Empire.
It is estimated to go to 400,000 to 600,000 Swiss Francs.
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