The Pink Star, formerly known as the Steinmetz Pink,
is a
diamond
Diamond is a Allotropes of carbon, solid form of the element carbon with its atoms arranged in a crystal structure called diamond cubic. Another solid form of carbon known as graphite is the Chemical stability, chemically stable form of car ...
weighing 59.60
carat (11.92 g), rated in
color
Color (American English) or colour (British English) is the visual perceptual property deriving from the spectrum of light interacting with the photoreceptor cells of the eyes. Color categories and physical specifications of color are associ ...
as Fancy Vivid Pink by the
Gemological Institute of America
The Gemological Institute of America (GIA) is a nonprofit institute based in Carlsbad, California. It is dedicated to research and education in the field of gemology and the jewelry arts. Founded in 1931, GIA's mission is to protect buyers and ...
. The Pink Star was mined by
De Beers
De Beers Group is an international corporation that specializes in diamond mining, diamond exploitation, diamond retail, diamond trading and industrial diamond manufacturing sectors. The company is active in open-pit, large-scale alluvial and c ...
in 1999 in
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
, and weighed 132.5 carat in the rough.
[ The Pink Star is the largest known diamond having been rated Vivid Pink. As a result of this exceptional rarity, the ]Beny Steinmetz
Beny Steinmetz ( he, בני שטיינמץ; born 2 April 1956) is an Israeli businessman and entrepreneur, with a focus in the mining and energy sectors, while being also active in the real estate and diamond-mining industries. Beny Steinmetz is ...
Group called Steinmetz Diamonds took a cautious 20 months to cut the Pink. It was unveiled in Monaco
Monaco (; ), officially the Principality of Monaco (french: Principauté de Monaco; Ligurian: ; oc, Principat de Mónegue), is a sovereign city-state and microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Italian region of Lig ...
on 29 May 2003 in a public ceremony.
The Pink Star was displayed (as the Steinmetz Pink) as part of the Smithsonian's "The Splendor of Diamonds" exhibit, alongside the De Beers Millennium Star
The Millennium Star is a diamond owned by De Beers. At 203.04 carats (40.608 g), it is the world's second largest known top-color (grade D, i.e. colourless), internally and externally flawless, pear-shaped diamond.
The diamond was ...
, the world’s second largest (the Cullinan I
The Cullinan Diamond is the largest gem-quality rough diamond ever found,Scarratt and Shor, p. 120. weighing (1 lb 5.92 oz), discovered at the Premier No.2 mine in Cullinan, South Africa, on 26 January 1905. It was named after Thomas Cull ...
is the largest) top colour (D) internally and externally flawless pear-shaped diamond at 203.04 carat (40.608 g), the Heart of Eternity Diamond
The Heart of Eternity is a diamond measuring 27.64 carats (5.528 g), rated in color as "Fancy Vivid Blue" by the Gemological Institute of America. The Heart of Eternity was cut by the Steinmetz Group, who owned the diamond before selling it to t ...
, a 27.64 carat (5.582 g) heart-cut blue diamond and the Moussaieff Red Diamond
The Moussaieff Red Diamond (formerly known as the Red Shield Diamond) is a diamond measuring 5.11 carats (1.022 g) with a triangular brilliant cut (sometimes called a trillion or a trilliant cut), rated in color as Fancy Red by the Gemological Ins ...
, the world's largest known Fancy Red diamond at 5.11 carat (1.022 ml)
2013 and 2017 auctions
The Pink Star was auctioned by Sotheby's
Sotheby's () is a British-founded American multinational corporation with headquarters in New York City. It is one of the world's largest brokers of fine and decorative art, jewellery, and collectibles. It has 80 locations in 40 countries, and ...
Geneva on 13 November 2013. The sale price was CHF 68,000,000 (CHF 76,325,000, USD 83,187,381 including commission fees), a world record for any gemstone.[ although, according to Forbes magazine, the auction price was not settled by the buyer and the stone was again added to the Sotheby's inventory.
On 3 April 2017, the Pink Star was sold at an auction in Hong Kong for US$71.2 million to ]Chow Tai Fook Enterprises
Chow Tai Fook group is a Hong Kong–based, privately-owned conglomerate with holdings in the jewellery, property development, hotel, department store, transportation, energy, telecommunications, port, casino, and other businesses. Despite the ...
.
Names
* 1999–2007: The Steinmetz Pink
* 2007–2017: The Pink Star
* 2017–present: CTF Pink Star
See also
* List of diamonds
Diamond (gemstone), Diamonds become famous typically for some combination of their size, color and quality. Diamonds occur naturally in many different colors, so the largest diamond of a particular color may not be large in absolute terms, but it ...
* Graff Pink (diamond)
The Graff Pink is a rare 24.78 carat pink diamond, once owned by American celebrity jeweller Harry Winston. The diamond, mounted in a ring, was sold by Sotheby's auctioneers in Geneva, Switzerland on 16 November 2010. Before its sale, the stone ...
; prior to the November 2013 auction the most expensive diamond of any color to be sold at auction.
References
{{Reflist
* Natural resources of Africa
"The Steinmetz Pink"
Retrieved 26 April 2017.
* Smithsonian Museum of Natural History
Retrieved 13 April 2005.
* The World of Famous Diamonds
External links
Pink diamonds
Diamonds originating in South Africa
Individual diamonds