Auction Record Holders
Eleven landmark diamonds sold at public auction — each with its documented price, year and auction house, ordered by price.
This is a selection, not a complete league table. Other stones also sit among the highest auction prices — for example the Winston Pink Legacy (18.96 ct Fancy Vivid Pink, about $50 million, Christie's Geneva 2018) and the Bleu Royal (17.61 ct Fancy Vivid Blue, $43.8 million, Christie's Geneva 2023). Prices below include buyer's premium and are the figures published at the time of sale. For the wider story of these stones, start at the Famous Rare Diamonds hub.
The CTF Pink Star — $71.2 Million
Mined by De Beers in South Africa in 1999 as a 132.5-carat rough, it was cut by Steinmetz Diamonds over about 20 months into a 59.60-carat oval — the largest Internally Flawless Fancy Vivid Pink the GIA has graded. At Sotheby's Hong Kong in April 2017, Chow Tai Fook bought it for $71.2 million, still the highest price paid for any jewel at auction.
The CTF Pink Star · 59.60 ct
The Williamson Pink Star — $57.7 Million
According to Sotheby's, only the second Internally Flawless Fancy Vivid Pink over 10 carats ever offered at auction — the first being the CTF Pink Star. Its October 2022 price of $57.7 million works out to more than $5.2 million per carat, the highest price per carat paid for any diamond or gemstone at auction.
The Williamson Pink Star · 11.15 ct
The Oppenheimer Blue — $57.5 Million
Named after its former owner Sir Philip Oppenheimer, of the family long associated with De Beers. A rectangular step cut shows color and clarity openly, which makes a large, highly saturated step-cut blue diamond especially uncommon. It sold at Christie's Geneva in May 2016 for $57.5 million, well above its estimate.
The Oppenheimer Blue · 14.62 ct
The De Beers Blue — $57.5 Million
Recovered in 2021 at the Cullinan mine in South Africa. At the time of its April 2022 sale it was the largest Internally Flawless Fancy Vivid Blue ever offered at auction (the 17.61-carat Bleu Royal later exceeded it). Like almost all natural blues it is Type IIb — its color comes from trace boron in an otherwise nitrogen-free crystal, as explained in the science of diamond color.
The De Beers Blue · 15.10 ct
The Blue Moon of Josephine — $48.5 Million
Cut from a 29.62-carat rough recovered at the Cullinan mine in 2014. The GIA reported that it phosphoresces red after exposure to short-wave ultraviolet light — a trait it shares with the Hope Diamond. Bought at Sotheby's Geneva in November 2015 by Hong Kong collector Joseph Lau, who named it after his seven-year-old daughter; at about $4.03 million per carat, it was a record at the time.
The Blue Moon of Josephine · 12.03 ct
The Graff Pink — $46.2 Million
Held in a private collection for some 60 years after Harry Winston sold it, this emerald-cut pink was bought by Laurence Graff at Sotheby's Geneva in November 2010 for $46.2 million — then the highest auction price for any diamond. Graff had it repolished: less than a carat was removed, and the stone was regraded as a 23.88-carat Fancy Vivid Pink, Internally Flawless. It is a rare documented case of a recut raising both the color and clarity grades.
The Graff Pink · 23.88 ct after repolishing
The Princie Diamond — $39.3 Million
Catalogued as a Golconda diamond and once part of the collection of the Nizams of Hyderabad. It was named in 1960 in honor of the 14-year-old son of the Maharani of Baroda, whose nickname was "Princie." It reappeared at Christie's New York in April 2013 and sold for $39.3 million. Its antique cushion shape reflects how large stones were cut before the modern brilliant.
The Princie Diamond · 34.65 ct
The Wittelsbach-Graff — $24.3 Million (Auction)
Its recorded history begins in the 17th-century Spanish court; it entered the Bavarian (Wittelsbach) crown jewels in the 18th century. Laurence Graff bought it at Christie's London in December 2008 for about $24.3 million and had it recut to 31.06 carats, after which the GIA graded it Fancy Deep Blue, Internally Flawless. The recut was widely criticized by historians. Graff is reported to have later sold it privately for around $80 million — a figure that was never officially confirmed. Its full story is on Part II — Legendary Diamonds.
The Wittelsbach-Graff · 31.06 ct
"A fine blue diamond is not merely a gemstone. It is a geological event that required a billion years and a few atoms of boron."— Brian Gavin
The Archduke Joseph — $21.5 Million
One of the largest documented Golconda diamonds, named after Archduke Joseph August of Austria. It is Type IIa, meaning no nitrogen detectable by standard infrared testing. Its November 2012 sale at Christie's Geneva set the auction record for a colorless diamond at the time; that record has since been passed by larger D-color stones.
The Archduke Joseph · 76.02 ct
The Martian Pink — $17.4 Million
Named by Harry Winston in 1976, the year NASA's Viking landers reached Mars. Pink diamonds of this size are rarely cut as round brilliants, because the round shape gives up more weight from the rough than most fancy shapes. It sold at Christie's Hong Kong in May 2012 for $17.4 million.
The Martian Pink · 12.04 ct
The Chloe Diamond — $16.2 Million
Cut from a rough of about 365 carats, this was the largest D-Flawless round brilliant ever offered at auction when it sold at Sotheby's Geneva in November 2007. Guess Jeans founder Georges Marciano bought it and named it after his 12-year-old daughter. At about $192,000 per carat it set the per-carat record for a colorless diamond at the time. Why cut precision matters so much in a colorless round is explained in the anatomy of the round brilliant.
How to Read These Prices
Auction prices record what one buyer paid on one day. They are useful markers of what the rarest stones can reach, not a guide to what any other diamond is worth. Every grade quoted here comes from a laboratory report — see how the GIA grades fancy color and how grading laboratories compare.
Sources: Sotheby's and Christie's sale results; GIA (Blue Moon phosphorescence); Graff (Graff Pink repolishing); JCK and Swissinfo (Chloe Diamond, 2007).
Explore Rare Diamonds
The same qualities that set these diamonds apart — color, clarity, chemistry and precise cutting — are what we look for in every diamond we select for our collectors.
Schedule a Private Consultation