Mellon Blue diamond sells for 25.6 million dollars
The Mellon Blue_ a 9.51-carat fancy vivid blue diamond formerly owned by the US art collector Bunny Mellon_ sold for 25.6 million dollars at auction on Tuesday.
The diamond was sold by auctioneers Christie's in Geneva as part of its Magnificent Jewels sale in the Swiss city.
The gem sold for 20_525_000 Swiss francs at the Hotel des Bergues_ having been estimated to fetch between 16 and 24 million francs.
Rahul Kadakia_ who conducted the sale_ said the price was evidence of the "elite appetite amongst collectors for extraordinary and storied gems".
The stone_ set in a serpentine ring_ once belonged to Rachel Lambert Mellon_ better known as Bunny Mellon_ a US horticulturalist_ philanthropist and art collector.
"The Mellon Blue is an outstanding stone_" said Max Fawcett_ head of jewellery at Christie's in Geneva.
"More than that_ though_ it has also become symbolic of a lifestyle of a bygone era -- the type only possible with a Gilded Age fortune."
The brilliant-cut stone is graded as internally flawless.
The diamond was last seen publicly in 2014_ when it was auctioned in New York after her death at the age of 103_ selling for more than 32 million dollars.
Tobias Kormind_ managing director of Europe's largest online diamond jeweller 77 Diamonds_ said in a statement that he was expecting the gem to go for a higher price on Tuesday.
"Geopolitical tensions... and a weakened Chinese economy that kept many usual buyers away_ left the room distinctly cautious_" he said.
"Whether this restraint will ripple through the rest of the Geneva season remains to be seen."
Sotheby's is holding its annual Royal and Noble Jewels sale in Geneva on Wednesday.
A brooch seized from Napoleon Bonaparte as he fled the Battle of Waterloo in 1815_ laden with old mine-cut diamonds has been valued at 150_000 to 250_000 dollars.
Also going under the hammer is a 10.08-carat vivid pink diamond_ named "The Glowing Rose"_ which is expected to rake in around 20 million dollars.
The gem "of exceptional quality" was named after its "extremely rare" luminous and pure pink colour_ Sotheby's said.(AFP)