A diamond with an unusual history will go on auction at Sotheby’s in June: A woman bought what she thought was a piece of costume jewellery for £10 from the boot of a car in the 1980s. These car-boot sales, according to reports, were quite common in the 1980s. Now, it turns out that the piece is actually a white 26-carat diamond, which may bring £350,000 at auction.
Jessica Wyndham, head of the auction house’s London jewellery department, called the case “a one-off windfall, an amazing find”, saying that the woman who had bought the diamond had no idea of its real value at the time.
The diamond is “an antique cushion shape”, according to multiple news reports. The woman brought the stone to Sotheby’s when a jeweller notified her “it may be valuable”. Now, she only has to wait another month to find out how valuable the stone really is.
