A sale of “beyond rare” diamonds – primarily pink, red and violet stones from the Argyle mine – delivered “strong results”, owners Rio Tinto said yesterday (3 November) although it declined to provide actual prices.
Fancy color diamonds from the iconic mine, which closed in November 2020, are now in such short supply that Rio Tinto had to buy back gems from customers for its Beyond Rare Tender: The Art Series 02.
The tender, which closed on 18 November, delivered a strong result, the company said, reflecting “the extraordinary rarity and unique provenance of the collection, together with the ongoing appeal for truly scarce natural fancy coloured diamonds”.
White and yellow diamonds from the Diavik mine, in the Northwest Territories of Canada, were also among the total of 76 diamonds, with a combined weight of 39.44 carats.
A highlight of the event was “Old Masters”, a legacy inventory of seven pink, red and violet diamonds of 0.60 carats to 2.63 carats all unearthed from Argyle over a decade ago, in one case from 1987.
Rio Tinto said 12 successful bidders came from Australia, Europe, Japan, Hong Kong, the Middle East, Singapore and North America.
Sinead Kaufman, chief executive of Rio Tinto Minerals, said: “The continued strong global interest in highly collectible natural coloured diamonds and the resulting value creation, reflects their stature as works of art to be treasured for future generations.”
Argyle produced around 95 per cent of the world’s pink and red diamonds during 37 years of operation.
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