Two Blues Each Fetch Over $8m

(IDEX Online) - Two blue diamonds each sold for over $8 million yesterday (9 June) at Christie's New York, highlighting the importance of color over size.

The 31.62‑carat Azure Blue, the largest fancy blue diamond ever offered at auction, went for $8,371,000, or $262,500 per carat. It was graded as fancy blue.

At the same auction a far smaller stone - at 5.04-carats less than a sixth of the size, but graded as fancy vivid blue - sold for almost as much, at $8,127,000.

The smaller stone achieved $1,607,000 per carat, more than six times as much as the Azure Blue, demonstrating the extent to which color intensity dominates pricing in fancy color diamonds (The GIA scale goes from Fancy Light to Fancy to Fancy Intense to Fancy Vivid).

Both stones carried pre-sale estimates of $6.5 million to $8.5 million at the Magnificent Jewels auction on 9 June.

The Azure Blue is fancy blue pear modified brilliant-cut diamond, VVS1 clarity, potentially Internally Flawless, Type IIb, set in a platinum ring with pink round diamonds.

The smaller blue stone is a fancy vivid blue marquise modified brilliant-cut, VVS2 clarity, potentially Internally Flawless, Type IIb, in a platinum ring with tapered baguette-cut diamonds.

The sale achieved a total of $49,689,850, with 100% sold by lot and 149% sold vs low estimate, Christie's said.

Pic shows (left) the Azure Blue and (right) 5.04-carat fancy vivid blue.