The Hong Kong Jewels Auction Hong Kong Thursday, October 5, 2023 | Phillips
    • Set with a brilliant-cut fancy intense blue diamond weighing 1.63 carats, mounted in white gold, size 6½.

      Accompanied by GIA report no. 2193503399, stating that the diamond weighing 1.63 carats is Fancy Intense Blue, Natural Colour, VS1 Clarity.
      附美國GIA證書

  • Catalogue Essay

    Roughs of blue diamonds are so rare to come by that every discovery is handled with utmost care to ensure the potential of such natural treasure is fully maximized. It takes on average several months of meticulous study before a window is polished on the rough, allowing the lapidary to review the inclusions and colour distribution to determine how the rough should be cut. The final cutting and polishing of the stone may take a year or more before a faceted gem is achieved.

    Among the rarest cutting styles found in coloured diamonds is round brilliant-cut. This is one of the most celebrated cutting styles for colourless diamonds on engagement rings, but it is a highly uncommon choice for coloured diamonds. This is because coloured diamond roughs are extremely valuable, and it is crucial to maximize weigh yield and to intensify its colour. These are the factors that stonecutters prioritize when deciding on how a rough should be fashioned. Round brilliant-cut usually results in high wastage of raw materials in the cutting process, and it is not the most efficient in enhancing colour. The cutters were presented with a very unique circumstance and opportunity for this round brilliant-cut blue diamond to be achieved. Moreover, it received a ‘Fancy Intense’ grading from GIA, which guarantees a strong alluring colour.

    Natural blue diamods comprise only about 0.02% of mined diamonds, and its colour is caused by trace amounts of boron in the crystal lattice. Up until recent years, scientist still have difficulties to explain how boron is imbued in diamonds and where the element originates from. Research published in 2018 by GIA finally provide a fact-based story to its formation. When sea water infiltrates the ocean floor, boron was deposited onto the oceanic crust, which was then subducted down to the lower mantel (>660km) during the inexorable movement of the immense tectonic plates. This depth is approximately four times deeper than most other kinds of diamonds, making blue diamonds among the deepest diamonds ever found.

579

Fancy Intense Blue Diamond Ring

Set with a brilliant-cut fancy intense blue diamond weighing 1.63 carats, mounted in white gold, size 6½.

Accompanied by GIA report no. 2193503399, stating that the diamond weighing 1.63 carats is Fancy Intense Blue, Natural Colour, VS1 Clarity.
附美國GIA證書

Estimate
HK$6,240,000 - 9,360,000 
$800,000-1,200,000

Sold for HK$7,366,000

Contact Specialist

Louisa Chan
Specialist, Head of Sale
JewelleryHK@phillips.com
+852 2318 2000

The Hong Kong Jewels Auction

Hong Kong Auction 5 October 2023