A 205.7-carat, Fancy intense yellow, cushion-shaped diamond, one of the world’s largest yellow gems, will soon be put under the hammer by Christie’s London, IDEX Online reports.
The Red Cross Diamond, as it is called, “has a pavilion distinctively faceted in the shape of a Maltese cross.” It was unearthed by De Beers in South Africa in 1901. In 1918, the gem was sold in aid of the British Red Cross Society and the Order of St. John for $13,000 ($780,000 in today’s money). In 1973, it was sold again, this time to a private individual for CHF 1.8 million.
The diamond will again be offered for sale at Christie’s London on May 11, “with an undisclosed part of the sale revenue to be donated to the International Committee of the Red Cross,” according to the report.
