The 75.36-carat stone was part of Christie’s Hong Kong Magnificent Jewels collection. It sold for about US$11 million (A$12m), securing the highest price ever paid for a briolette-cut diamond.
Purchased by China Star Entertainment vice chairman Tiffany Chen, the D coloured, Type IIa briolette stone has been named The Star of China after Chen’s company. According to Christie’s, this was the first time a diamond at auction had been given a name highlighting China.
The stone is part of a pendant necklace that is also set with a marquise-cut purplish pink diamond. A briolette cut diamond has triangular or diamond-shaped facets that cover the circular cross-section of the stone.
As previously reported by Jeweller, Christie’s broke two auction records earlier this year with the sale of the Princie Diamond and the Winston Legacy diamond.
In other diamond news, Rio Tinto has decided to keep its diamonds unit after investigating a number of ownership options, including divestment.
The announcement follows a number of media reports that suggested the mining giant was looking to float its diamond division on the London Stock Exchange.
Rio Tinto’s diamond business includes the Argyle mine in Western Australia, 60 per cent of the Diavik mine in Canada and a 78 per cent interest in the Murowa mine in Zimbabwe.
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