Sotheby’s Will Try To Reignite The Love For Fancy Color Diamonds With A Unique Pair Of Hearts At The Upcoming Hong Kong Auction

On July 10th, Sotheby’s will be holding its second live auction for the year, but this time in Hong Kong. There are 203 items being offered, and two of the top 3 items are Fancy Color Diamonds. We are hopeful that things will turn around in Hong Kong, especially because of the political instability as well as Covid-19.

The top Fancy Color Diamond lot is the 5.04 carat, Heart Shape, Fancy Vivid Blue Diamond with a VS2 clarity. It is valued between $7.8 million to $9.7 million or $1.55 million to $1.92 million per carat. According to historical information, this valuation is very conservative and dating back to 2013. In November 2013 a 5.04 carat Fancy Vivid Blue with SI1 clarity was sold for $1.3 million per carat. It is the following year that the 9.75 carat Fancy Vivid Blue (Zoe Blue Diamond) was sold in New York and created a trend into Blue Diamonds. The value starts very low to attract more bidders.

5.04 carat Fancy Vivid Blue Diamond
Image Credit: Sotheby’s

The second highest valued Fancy Color Diamond is the 4.49 carat, Fancy Vivid Pink, also Heart Shape, Internally Flawless Clarity. It is valued between $7.53 million to $8.83 million or $1.68 million to $1.97 million per carat. We have not seen a 4-5 carat Vivid Pink at auction since November 2004, when a 4.08 carat Fancy Vivid Pink Diamond was sold for $475k per carat. We have come a long way from those valuations…

4.49 carat, Fancy Vivid Pink Diamond
Image Credit: Sotheby’s

A 4.05 carat, Fancy Intense Purplish Pink with SI2 clarity is being offered and valued between $780k to $1.04 million. This translates to $193k to $257k per carat. This valuation is quite low, but considering that the clarity is an SI2, it is valued appropriately. I am not sure how well it will perform.

4.05 carat, Fancy Intense Purplish Pink Diamond
Image Credit: Sotheby’s

The 2.59 carat, Fancy Deep Purple-Pink with a VS2 clarity by Van Cleef & Arpels is being valued at between $545k to $844k in total or $210k to $325k per carat. Valuation seems right on. The potential to see is if it can be slightly polished and upgraded to a Vivid, which will make it more desirable as well as increase its value. The balance between the Purple and Pink color, makes it quite rare. Sotheby’s offered another such diamond last month in Geneva.

2.59 carat, Fancy Deep Purple-Pink Diamond
Image Credit: Sotheby’s

A 6.39 carat, Light Pink diamond with a VS1 clarity is being valued between $520k to $650k or $81k to $102k per carat. I wonder where it will end up selling. the image seems to show a strong color, and being that it is certified as Light, I doubt that in reality the color is that strong. It is strongly recommended to physically view the diamond prior to any bidding.

6.39 carat Light Pink Diamond
Image Credit: Sotheby’s

The combo of the 3.18 carat, Fancy Grey-Blue diamond wit the 2.61 carat Color less diamond, makes this ring look amazing. The Blue diamond has a VS2 clarity is being valued between $402k to $519k or $126k to $163k per carat. I am certain it will definitely surpass the high value as it is quite low.

3.18 carat Fancy Grey-Blue Diamond
Image Credit: Sotheby’s

Next is a 1.07 carat, Fancy Intense Pink diamond. It is valued between $169k to $234k or $156k to $219k per carat. The valuation is low, but it is mainly due to the clarity being an I clarity.

1.07 carat Fancy Intense Pink
Image Credit: Sotheby’s

A rare pair of 1.02 and 1.01 carat, Fancy Purplish Pink, Heart shape with SI1 clarities are being offered at a value of $156k to $228k or $77k to $112k per carat on average. It is most likely that the price will be higher.

1.02 and 1.01 carat Fancy Purplish Pink Hearts
Image Credit: Sotheby’s

Another pair of hearts are being offered in a twin ring. The 1.01 carat, Fancy Intense Blue diamond with I1 clarity and the 1.01 carat, Fancy Orangy Pink with a VS2 clarity, are valued at between $156k to $260k in total. Normally a Fancy Orangy pink like this would be valued at around $50k to $75k while a Fancy Intense Blue will be valued at $100k to $150k maybe slightly more simply because of the I clarity, so it should be between $150k to $225k. The valuation is in the range where it should be. This would not be considered an investment unless it was acquired for much less than market…

1.01 and 1.01 carat Pink and Blue Diamond Ring
Image Credit: Sotheby’s

There are some other, very nice, Fancy Color Diamond Jewelry that are being offered. All in various price ranges. This will allow us to know more how the market is overall. We have to remember that it is essential to view the Color Diamonds prior to buying as it is not enough to view images, videos and certificates.

We also have to remember that currently, due to market slowdown, the majority of people think that they will get items at bargain prices because sellers, mostly suppliers and dealers need cash. It is only partially true as most Fancy Color diamond suppliers are well financed, and would rather wait longer before selling inventory at less than market value. On the other hand, time is money, and the longer things are as they are, and the more the pressure builds. Some may sell at discounts to market simply because they may have other opportunities that make more sense. In April the US Diamond trading industry saw a 97% drop due to various reasons that made trading impossible.

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