The rectangular-cut, 18.96-carat, fancy-vivid-pink stone
went for $50.4 million at the auction Tuesday, becoming the most expensive pink
diamond Christie’s has sold, the auction house said. At $2.7 million per carat,
it also achieved a world-record average price for a pink diamond at auction,
beating the 14.93-carat Pink Promise, which fetched $32.5 million ($2.1 million per carat) at Christie’s Hong Kong
in 2017.
The buyer renamed the stone — formerly the Pink Legacy — as the
Winston Pink Legacy. It previously belonged to the Oppenheimer family, and had
a presale estimate of $30 million to $50 million.
“This exceptional diamond captured the imagination of
international collectors across the globe, with over 30,000 people visiting
Christie’s sale previews to see this remarkable stone,” said Rahul Kadakia,
Christie’s international head of jewelry. “It has taken its rightful place
among the world’s greatest diamonds.”
The auction also saw an Art Deco piece by Van Cleef &
Arpels fetch $4.3 million, well above its presale estimate of CHF 2 million to
CHF 3 million ($2 million to $3 million). A natural-pearl necklace garnered
$1.2 million against a valuation of CHF 240,000 to CHF 340,000 million ($238,190
to $337,345 million).
Some 86% of lots sold at the Magnificent Jewels auction, yielding
a total of $110.2 million. The event was 90% sold by value of items available.
Image: The Winston Pink Legacy. (Christie’s)