Ruby gemstone sells for record $46m
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A model showing the Estrela de Fura ruby, the largest and most valuable ruby to ever appear at auction.
PHOTO: AFP
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NEW YORK – A ruby sold for a total of US$34.8 million (S$46 million) at Sotheby’s in New York on Thursday, setting a new record price at auction for the precious stone.
The 55.22-carat gemstone, named Estrela de Fura, was already the largest ruby ever to go under the hammer.
It was cut from a 101-carat rough stone discovered in July 2022 at the Montepuez ruby mine in Mozambique, operated by the Fura Gems company.
The stone was the star attraction of a sale offering 100 different pieces of jewellery.
Offered at a starting price of US$21 million, it sold for US$30 million plus fees and commissions to an anonymous telephone buyer.
The previous record belonged to a 25.59-carat Burmese ruby, which was sold for a total price of US$30.33 million by Sotheby’s in Geneva, in 2015.
“This is really a true wonder of nature,” said Mr Quig Bruning, head of jewellery for Sotheby’s in the Americas.
“Any ruby that comes out of the ground that ends up over five carats as a polished ruby is something that’s rare. Ten carats is really rare. Twenty carats is almost unheard of.
“Any ruby really over 50 carats is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” he added.
Sotheby’s also sold “The Eternal Pink”, a rare 10.57-carat diamond from a mine in Botswana, for the same price of US$34.8 million.
That set a record per carat of US$3.29 million for a stone of its colour.
The most expensive pink diamond sold to date was the 59.6-carat “Pink Star” in Hong Kong, which went for US$71.2 million in 2017. AFP
