Rare Pink Diamond to be Auctioned by Sotheby's

A Sotheby's employee displays a 24.78-carat
 "fancy intense pink"
 (Credit: AP Photo)




.



A rare pink diamond will be auctioned off by Sotheby's in Geneva next week. The legendary office house in hinting that this piece of jewelry is on course fetch record bids.

According to reports, The auctioneers have valued the 24.78 carat Fancy Intense Pink diamond mounted on a ring at 27 million to 38 million dollars (20 million to 28 million euros. This would break the record of 24 million bid on a rare blue diamond a few years ago.

One of 500 lots to be auctioned off by Sotheby's next week, the diamond is ranked in the top 2% of diamonds in the world when it comes to flawlessness.

According to msnbc reports, "It was last seen on the market about 60 years ago when it was sold by legendary US jeweller Harry Winston and kept in a private collection since then, a feature that is adding to its value."

The rare gemstone market has recently seen a surge in interest as high end buyers look for alternative investments and luxury goods. Rare pink diamonds have been collected by the very wealthy and gem connoisseurs since being discovered in India decades ago.

Via msnbc, "other lots on sale next week have historic celebrity value, including jewellery that belonged to Cristina Onassis, Cristina Ford, wife of Henry Ford II, grandson of the founder of the Ford Motor Company, as well as items that belonged to Abbas Hilmi II (1874-1944), the last Khedive or viceroy of Egypt and Sudan."

The auction will be held in Geneva next week, where it is often held twice yearly, once in the Spring and once in the Fall.