Diamonds are a girl’s best friend, but the giant, glimmering beauty pictured above found its way to a masculine friend today when it was sold for 76.3 million Swiss francs, which converts to a little over $83 Million US dollars. The diamond, dubbed the “Pink Star” diamond, was sold at the Sotheby’s semi-annualjewellery sale in Geneva, where it was by far the star of the show. If real life were a Batman comic, this diamond would have found its way into Cat Woman’s hands in no time.
The final selling price included “buyer’s premium,” otherwise known as commission fees. The coveted gem was the object of a four-way bidding war that erupted in the room for about five minutes, which narrowed down to a two-way duel between a bearded man in a Jewish skullcap and a woman representing a buyer via the telephone. The bearded man eventually won, but refused to identify himself; he only said that he was representing someone else. Sotheby’s later revealed that the man had been a representative for Isaac Wolf, a New York diamond cutter with plans to re-name the diamond the “pink dream.”
It had been previously estimated that the diamond might sell for $60 million, making the shocking price paid for it even more astounding. The $83 million snagged at the end of the day wound up breaking a record, as announced by Sotheby’s representative, David Bennett. Bennett, just before bringing the gavel down in the Geneva Ballroom, stated, “”Ladies and gentlemen, 68 million (Swiss francs) is the world record bid for a diamond ever bid and it’s right here.” The theme tune to “The Pink Panther” played after the bid’s winner was announced, and guests giggled at the tongue-in-cheek ploy as they drank from their glasses of pink champagne.
Perhaps this whole incident is the perfect way to gather an accurate picture of what the “1%” does in their free time.
[Image courtesy of the BBC YouTube channel.]