A pink diamond of "unmatched color and brilliance" is expected to fetch more than $35 million when it goes up for sale in New York, Sotheby's auction house announced Wednesday.
Weighing 10,57 carats and named the "Eternal Rose", the "ultra-rare" gemstone will go on sale this June, four years after South African firm De Beers discovered it in one of its mines in Botswana.
It is the most valuable diamond of its shade ever to appear at auction, according to Sotheby's, CNN wrote.
The price of diamonds is largely determined by what geologists call the four "Cs": carat, cut, color and clarity. For the latter classification, the stone is classified as "flawless", meaning that any defects are only visible under close magnification. Meanwhile, its color has been described as "vivid fantasy", the highest degree of intense color achieved by only 4% of pink diamonds.
Pink diamonds have increased in value in recent years. This is partly due to a drop in supply caused by the closure in 2020 of Australia's Argyle mine, which previously produced most of the world's pink diamonds.
