Biggest white diamond ever auctioned fetches US$21.9 million
- The Rock, a 228.31-carat stone, failed to smash the US$33.7 million world record price for such a gem
- The perfectly symmetrical pear-shaped diamond was extracted from a mine in South Africa in the early 2000s
The Rock, the biggest white diamond ever auctioned, sold for 21.7 million Swiss francs (US$21.9 million) on Wednesday, far short of the record for such a jewel.
The 228.31-carat stone, larger than a golf ball, was sold in Geneva by Christie’s auction house.
There had been high hopes that The Rock would smash the world record for a white diamond, which stands at US$33.7 million, a sum fetched in Geneva in 2017 for a 163.41-carat gem.
But the bidding, which started at 14 million Swiss francs, ground to a halt after two minutes at 18.6 million, with the price rising to 21.7 million once the buyer’s premium was added on. The presale estimate had been 19-30 million Swiss francs.
The Rock, a perfectly symmetrical pear-shaped diamond, was sold by an unnamed owner from North America. It was bought by a private collector bidding by telephone.
Rahul Kadakia, Christie’s international head of jewellery, brought down the hammer to applause in the sale room in the plush Hotel des Bergues.