'The Blue Moon of Josephine' diamond 12.03 carats
'The Blue Moon of Josephine' diamond 12.03 carats Fancy Vivid Blue
Made by: South Africa
Sold for: USD 48.4 million
Auction house: Sotheby's auction in Geneva
Sale date: November 2015
Seller: Cora International NY
Buyer: Hong Kong billionaire Joseph Lau Luen-hung
From Sotheby's:
“Blue diamonds shine among nature’s most rare and valuable gems. For centuries, their unique sparkle and intriguing form have captivated gemmologists, historians, and spectators worldwide. Though any diamond with natural blue colouration is a rare discovery, some are so exceptional that they emerge only once in a lifetime. The Blue Moon Diamond, a 12.03 carat gem of Fancy Vivid Blue colour and Internally Flawless clarity, is one of those remarkable occurrences”.
Introduction of the GIA monograph
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:
The Blue Moon of Josephine is a 12.03 carats (2.406 g) blue diamond, described as flawless by experts, that was discovered in South Africa in January 2014 and was sold at a Sotheby's auction in Geneva in November 2015 at a record-setting price of $48.4 million (43.2 million Swiss francs plus fees). The diamond is the largest cushion-shaped blue stone classified as "fancy vivid" ever to appear at auction.
The "Blue Moon" sale, according to David Bennett, the head of Sotheby's international jewellery division, set a record for the highest-ever price per carat and it made the diamond both the most expensive jewel ever sold at auction and the world's most expensive diamond, regardless of color.