Headlining Christie’s Autumn Luxury Week in Geneva is a 24-carat Fancy Intense Pink emerald-cut diamond ring by Bulgari. This exceptional diamond will be offered on 10 November in Christie’s Magnificent Jewels auction with an estimate of US$12-18 million.
From the collection of a distinguished European noble family, this fabulous stone has remained in private hands for over 70 years and has never before been offered for sale at auction.
According to family lore, the rough diamond was acquired in India during the 1950s by the current owner’s great-grandfather and was later entrusted to Bulgari, where it was set into the elegant pink diamond ring seen today.
At the time Bulgari, the Roman jeweller, was emerging as a destination for some of the world’s most discerning collectors and patrons, making it a natural choice for a diamond of such rarity.
The 1950s coincided with Rome’s emergence as the centre of post-war glamour. With major Hollywood productions filming at Cinecittà Studios, international stars gathered in the city, creating what became known as “Hollywood on the Tiber”. Bulgari’s boutique at Via Condotti became a social and cultural meeting point, welcoming many of the world’s most renowned celebrities.
The diamond displays the coveted Fancy Intense Pink colour grade and a refined rectangular step-cut, a combination at its impressive size of 24 carats that embodies rarity and elegance. Classified as a Type IIa diamond, a category representing fewer than 2% of all gem-quality diamonds, its remarkable hue and refined proportions are evocative of the qualities long associated with the most celebrated historic diamonds, including those from legendary sources such as Golconda.
From the legendary diamond fields to the ateliers of Bulgari, through generations of the same noble family and preserving an unbroken history of ownership, The Bulgari Pink is of exceptional rarity, and enduring elegance.
The Christie’s Magnificent Jewels live auction will take place at the Four Seasons Hotel des Bergues in Geneva on 10 November, with the jewel on view from 5 to 10 November.