$34.8 million rare pink diamond sold at Sotheby’s

Did you hear the Barbie movie with Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling used so much pink paint that they caused a global shortage of the paint color? Pink is definitely the color of the moment, even in the gemstone and jewelry world. Earlier today, the Eternal Pink, one of the rarest pink diamonds in the world, went under the hammer at Sotheby’s in New York as part of their magnificent jewels auction.

The Eternal Pink diamond listed as lot no 62 had already received advanced bids prior to it being called and so bidding began for the diamond at $26 million. 5 bids were received during the live auction before the hammer went down and the Eternal Pink sold for a whopping $30 million. With buyer’s premium, the rare vivid pink diamond will actually cost the buyer $34,804,500. As of now the buyer’s identity is still unknown but we’ll keep you posted if the information becomes public.

What makes the Eternal Pink so valuable? Pink diamonds are already some of the rarest and most precious diamonds in the world, but the Eternal Pink is in a league of its own. Quig Bruning, the head of Sotheby's Jewelry for the Americas described it as "the most beautiful and concentrated shade of pink in diamonds” they have ever seen or has ever come to market. The diamond’s intense, enchanting color has been likened to “bubblegum” and been called the “quintessential pink”.

Cut and polished from a 23.78-carat rough diamond found in Botswana, the Eternal Pink is said to be far rarer than a René Magritte or an Andy Warhol. The internally flawless, 10.57-carat cushion mixed-cut diamond is a true masterpiece.

The extraordinary gemstone had already been exhibited in Hong Kong, Dubai, Singapore, Shanghai, Taiwan, and Geneva before arriving for the auction in New York.

While $34.8 million is incredible, it did fall slightly short of expectations. Prior to the auction, the Eternal Pink had an estimated value of over $35 million. It was even anticipated to challenge the per-carat record for any diamond or gemstone sold at auction. However, perhaps this auction is a reflection of the current economic climate as buyers remained conservative with their bids. The record for per carat price for a diamond is still safely held by the 11.15-carat Williamson Pink Star, which sold for $57.7 million or $5.17 million per carat in Hong Kong in October 2022. Meanwhile, the record for the most valuable gemstone ever sold at auction also continues to remain intact with the 59.60-carat CTF Pink Star which was sold by Sotheby’s in 2017 for $71.2 million. The wait to see if either of these two records will ever be broken continues.