The 35.73-carat Australian golden yellow sapphire that was described by the American Gemological Laboratories as being “unrivalled” and “magnificent” will be auctioned at the Sotheby’s Australia Important Jewels sale in Melbourne on 12 May 2015.
“This formidable stone is a unique part of Australia’s mining history and reflects the superior quality of gems found in this country,” Sotheby’s Australia chairman Geoffrey Smith commented.
The gemstone was named the Willows sapphire as a nod to the Central Queensland Willows Gemfields in which it was discovered in 1946. It was cut from a piece of rough measuring 43mm x 28mm x 18mm in 1947. The rough also yielded two smaller stones.
The Willows sapphire is expected to fetch between AU$100,000 and AU$150,000.
In addition, another rare stone will be auctioned at the Sotheby’s Magnificent Jewels auction in New York on 21 April – a 100.2-carat emerald-cut diamond.
According to the auction house, the D colour, internally flawless, type IIa stone is considered “perfect” and joins “an elite group of just five comparable-quality diamonds over 100 carats that have ever been sold at auction worldwide”.
“It is the first true emerald-cut diamond over 100 carats to be offered at auction,” Gary Schuler, head of Sotheby’s New York jewellery department, added.
The diamond was produced from a piece of rough – weighing more than 200 carats – that came from a De Beers mine in southern Africa.
It will be displayed in Dubai, Los Angeles, Hong Kong, London and Doha, before returning to New York for exhibition and auction.
The diamond is expected to sell for up to US$25 million (AU$32.5 m).
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