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One of the rarest minerals are diamonds, which are now mined on almost all continents, except for Antarctica. Some of them can be between 100 million and 1,5 billion years old.
A cut diamond is called a diamond. If he is flawless, then he is called “pure water diamond».
All diamonds are worth a lot of money. Even those who rarely visit jewelry stores know this. And how much did you have to pay for the most expensive diamond in the world? How much are the most famous diamonds? You will find answers to these and other questions in our article.
10 The Little Prince, $40
«A little prince“Weighs 34,65 carats. This pink diamond was found in the south of India, in the spears of Golconda.
Its owner was the Nizam Asaf Jah I. It was passed down from generation to generation along with other treasures until it came to Asaf Jah VII, the last Nizam of Hyderabad. In 1937, the man was one of the richest people in the world. He had many wives and concubines, who bore him 149 children. When India was liberated, the Nizam transferred his power and left for Bombay, and his treasures were sold under the hammer.
The pink diamond ended up at auction in 1960. It was bought by the co-owner of the famous jewelry house Jacques Arpels. In honor of this, a reception was organized in Paris, and at the party it received its name “The Little Prince”.
Then the diamond was sold to an anonymous person for an unknown amount. But in 2013 (at the Christie’s auction) it was sold for $39,3 million. This is a US record.
9. Pink Graff, $46
It weighs 24,78 carats but is prized for its intense pink color. It is still not known where he was found, and when it happened. It was first talked about in the 1950s when the jeweler Harry Winson sold it to a private collector.
It was a unique stone, but for a long time it had no name. In 2010, it was put up for auction at Sotheby’s, where its original price was 27-38 million dollars.
It was purchased by Lawrence Graf via phone for $46158674. He called it “Pink Graff“. He gave the stone to his cutters, who recut it to improve its color and quality. It has shrunk to 23,88 carats.
8. Blue Moon, $48
This is a blue diamond that weighs only 12,03 carats. It has a unique color and transparency. Diamond (29,6 carats) was found in South Africa in 2014.
In 2015, the stone was auctioned by Sotheby’s, it got a name – “Blue Moon“. There they managed to sell it for 48 million dollars. It was bought by a Hong Kong businessman. Joseph Lau purchased it for his 4 year old daughter Josephine.
7. Wittelsbach, $24
It was called the diamond of kings, because. for 300 years it passed from one to another, until it became part of the royal Wittelsbach dynasty.
No one knows where he came from, because. The first information about it dates back to the XNUMXth century. But there is an assumption that he was brought from India.
Since 1722, it has been considered a family jewel of the Bavarian royal House of Wittelsbach, until Ludwig III was forced to abdicate in 1918.
Bavaria became a republic, and the property of the king was transferred to a special fund. The heirs were paid money, but due to inflation, they all “burned out”. The state sold the jewels, among them was diamond “Wittelsbach» (35,56 carats).
In 1931, he appeared at the Christie’s auction, where he was bought by a certain Thorpe for 56 thousand pounds. But there is a version that the price did not suit the organizers of the auction, and they never sold it.
The diamond itself has disappeared, only a copy of it remains. It was later accidentally discovered by a jeweler in 1962. It was remembered in 2008 when Christie put it up for sale again and was bought by Laurence Graff, a famous jeweler, for $24311190.
6. Pink Star, $71
«pink starfound in 1999. The diamond weighed 132,5 carats. The cutting was taken over by Steinmetz Diamonds, spending 2 years.
A stone weighing 59,6 carats, oval in shape, appeared. In 2013, at the auction, an offer was made to sell it for $ 83 million, but the deal did not take place then, the money was never received.
The chain of jewelry stores Chow Tai Fook Jewelery Group sold more than 71 million dollars for it.
5. Century, $100
It was named after the largest British diamond mining company De Beers, which celebrated its centenary in 1988. The weight of the diamond was 599 carats. It was said that it was found shortly before the jubilee. But there is a version that this happened 2 years earlier, but the company’s employees were forced to keep silent about the find.
It was discovered in South African mines. The cutting was entrusted to the famous master Gabi Tolkovsky, and all conditions were created for him.
Diamond “Century” turned out to be unique, weighed as much as 273,85 carats. It took 3 years to cut. Then the De Beers company sold the stone. Who bought it and at what price is not known. But it certainly cost at least 100 million dollars, because. it was for this amount that the diamond was insured in 1991.
4. Hope Diamond, $350
It weighs 45,52 carats and is blue. There is a legend, according to which, hope diamond brings bad luck.
But its first recorded owner was Henry Philip Hope. This was in 1839. It was passed down from generation to generation until Francis Pelham-Clinton-Hope went bankrupt and sold it to a jeweler.
After passing a few more owners, he went to Evelyn Walsh-McLean, and after her to the jeweler Harry Winston. He donated it to the Smithsonian Institution.
3. The Cullinan, not rated
Cullinan – the largest diamond in the world, the mass of which is 3106,75 carats, i.e. 621,35 g. It was discovered in 1905. They gave the name in honor of the person who owned the mine.
Then it was presented to King Edward VII for his birthday. The cutter, who was hired by the ruler, realized that it would not be possible to make one diamond, but he did everything that depended on him. It turned out 2 huge, 7 large and 96 miniature diamonds. The largest decorated the king’s scepter and the crown of the British Empire.
2. Sancy, no rating
It is a teardrop-shaped yellow stone that weighs 55,23 carats. The exact origin of the stone is unknown.
In 1570, Nicolas de Sancy bought it from a Turkish jeweler. Then he sold it to King James I, for about half a century it belonged to the Stuarts, until it was acquired by Cardinal Mazarin.
Then the stone became the property of the Bourbons, but during the revolution the treasury was looted, the famous diamonds disappeared.
In 1828, Pavel Demidov bought it for 80 thousand pounds, in 1865 he gave it to Djidzhiboy Jamsetdzhi for 100 thousand pounds, who, in turn, resold it.
In 1906 year Sancy belonged to the American industrialist Astor, their family owned it for 72 years. 4 Lord Astor sold this stone to the Louvre in 1978 for $1 million.
1. Kohinoor, not rated
This 105 carat diamond has a rich history that can be traced back as far as 1300. It is now part of the crown of Queen Elizabeth.
He came to Britain in 1850, when Queen Victoria ruled. In 1852, the diamond was recut to sparkle with new colors. Its weight has become significantly less, from 191 to 108,9 carats, i.e. it has lost over 42% of its mass. The operation was called dubious.
In 1853 “Kohinoor” was encrusted in the British crown, like 2 thousand other diamonds. Now, together with the crown, he remains in the Tower.