KARIM SAHIB / AFP via Getty Images
A giant diamond called “The Rock” was first exhibited in Dubai on Friday ahead of an auction where it is expected to reach up to $ 30 million.
The 228.31-carat pear-shaped gem, which was mined and polished in South Africa more than 20 years ago, is the largest white diamond to be auctioned, Christie’s auction house said.
After debuting at Christie’s Dubai, where it will be shown from March 26 to 29, The Rock will travel to Taipei, New York and Geneva, where it will be auctioned on May 11.
“The Middle East has always had a great appreciation for important jewelry and gemstones,” Rahul Kadakia, Christie’s international head of jewelry, told AFP. “We thought it would be good for us to throw the diamond in an area where there are so many great collectors of important gems of this nature.”
KARIM SAHIB / AFP via Getty Images
The diamond is the “largest DZ-colored pear-shaped diamond ever ranked” by the Gemological Institute of America, Christie’s said in a statement, adding that it is “color G, clarity VS1.”
The previous largest colorless diamond auction record was a 163.41 carat spark sold in November 2017 for $ 33.7 million, Christie’s said.
Earlier this year, London’s Sotheby’s sold “The Enigma,” the largest cut diamond ever seen at auction, at $ 555.55 carat, for $ 4.3 million.
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- diamond
- Christie’s
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