Rio Tinto unveiled in New York an iconic piece of jewellery handcrafted using Argyle
diamonds from its Australian mine and gold that was mined and minted by Rio Tinto in the US.
The $1.1 million necklace and ring known as Argyle Dreaming™, was created by famed
international designer, master craftsman and jeweller John Calleija. The one-off necklace and ring pays homage to the ancient landscape and majestic colours of the east Kimberley region of Western Australia, home to the 1.6 billion-year-old Argyle gems.
Comprising 673 pink, white, yellow, blue and champagne Argyle diamonds and 237 grams of Rio Tinto’s Kennecott gold, Argyle Dreaming™ was a painstaking endeavour that took over 800 hours to create.
Calleija said, “This was a labour of love, an opportunity to work with the entire Argyle
diamond colour palette, from a country that is imbued with rich heritage. I am thrilled with the Argyle Dreaming™ necklace and ring. They are a permanent record of the most intriguing diamonds in the world and a beautiful endeavour that highlights Rio Tinto’s commitment to integrity and traceability in its diamonds and gold supply chain.
“The elegant and versatile necklace design has an exquisite 3.55-carat white Argyle diamond in the centre, which can be switched with the Argyle champagne diamond at the centre piece of the ring.
Argyle’s fancy coloured diamonds in shades of pink, blue and yellow are accented throughout the design.
Rio Tinto vice president of sales and marketing, Alan Chirgwin said, “Encapsulating a rich history and an extraordinary provenance, Argyle Dreaming™ is a contemporary treasure and an heirloom for tomorrow.”
Rio Tinto’s Argyle diamond mine is the world’s largest producer of coloured diamonds. The mine will close in 2020 after almost four decades of production. Rio Tinto’s Kennecott mine is a fully integrated mining operation located outside Salt Lake City in Utah, producing gold and silver as a by-product of its copper production. The Argyle Dreaming™ necklace and ring will be showcased in New York and London before returning to Calleija’s stores in Australia.