Princie Diamond

Princie is a 34.65 - carat cushion-cut diamond in color fancy intense pink. He was found 300 years ago in the Indian Golconda mines and auctioned at Christie's for the price of 39.3 million U.S. dollars on 16 April 2013. According to the auction house is at Princie the third largest fancy pink diamond in the world.

Physical Properties

Investigations of the GIA ( Gemological Institute of America ) showed that Princie belongs to the category of diamonds of type IIa. These gems are distinguished by their high purity. Its pink color was classified as a high quality Fancy Intense Pink. Princie is currently the largest diamond in this color, which comes from the Golconda mines and has been certified by GIA. His grade is VS2. A special characteristic of the diamond is observed under the action of its UV radiation bright orange-red fluorescence. According to GIA, this optical effect is a typical feature of diamond of Indian origin. Of the more than 7 million diamonds that have been classified by the GIA, this phenomenon has so far been observed in only 40. Princie is the largest pink diamond with this fluorescence.

History

Princie was discovered 300 years ago in the Golconda mines. Long before he became known under its current name, it was in the possession of the royal family ( the Nizams ) of Hyderabad. In 1960 he was released from the current Nizam at Sotheby's to auction and purchased for a price of 46,000 British pounds jeweler Van Cleef & Arpels. Was named the diamond by Pierre Arpels, which it in honor of the then 14 -year-old Sayajirao Gaekwad ( 1945-1985 ), the Prince of Baroda, named after his nickname as " Princie ". Since 1960, you could not see the public the gemstone.

Auction in 2013

Princie was sold at auction on Tuesday, April 16, 2013 by Christie's in New York for the top prize of 39.3 million U.S. dollars to an anonymous telephone bidder. This was a record for the most expensive diamonds from the Golconda mines, which was ever sold at an auction set up. Besides, it was the highest price ever paid for a gem or a piece of jewelry at Christie's.