An exceptional 39.34-carat blue rough, Type IIb diamond, could ultimately fetch $64 million as a polished gem, IDEX Online reports.
The rare blue rough, which was mined at the Cullinan mine in South Africa, is scheduled to be sold at special tender by Petra Diamonds in July 2021. It is currently being shown in Antwerp, Dubai, Hong Kong and New York.
Industry veteran Howard Cohen, editor of The Jeweler Blog, is quoted in the piece as saying the 39.34-carat rough can be compared with another diamond from the same mine – The Blue Moon of Josephine. The Blue Moon started as a 29.6-carat rough diamond recovered in 2014. It was then bought by Cora International for $25.6 million, cut and polished to a 12.03-carat fancy vivid internally flawless cushion-cut stone, and sold at Sotheby’s to Hong Kong billionaire Joseph Lau for $48.5 million.
The new stone is larger. If it loses the same proportion in cutting – 59% – it will yield a polished gem of at least 16 carats. And, at the same price per carat of around $4 million, “that could translate to a price tag of $64 million”.
