Blue Diamond Sets Record at $9.6 Million

     This beautiful blue diamond set a new record at auction on April 24.  The 5.3 carat fancy deep-blue diamond is set in a Trombino ring by Bulgari, circa 1965.  The diamond is set horizontally with brilliant cut and baguette cut white diamonds.  The diamond was expected to bring $1.3 to $1.9 million.

     Selling at $9.6 million, or $ 1.8 million per carat, the stone brought six times the estimated price and broke the previous record per carat of a stone of this color.  Blue diamonds, especially those over 5.00 carats, are very rarely seen in auctions and are highly sought after.  
     The blue color is due to small atoms of boron mixing with the carbon atoms in a diamond, affecting the absorption of light passing through the stone and giving it a blue appearance.  Blue diamonds account for less than 1 percent of all diamonds mined.