World's biggest uncut diamond sells for $53-M

British jeweler Graff said Tuesday it has purchased the world's largest uncut diamond –roughly the size of a tennis ball –for $53 million (44.5 million euros).

Canadian miner Lucara Diamond sold to Graff the 1,109-carat gem, the Lesedi La Rona, which was found in Botswana's Karowe mine in late 2015.

"We are thrilled and honoured to become the new custodians of this incredible diamond," said company chairman, Laurence Graff, in a statement.

"The stone will tell us its story, it will dictate how it wants to be cut, and we will take the utmost care to respect its exceptional properties."

Lucara confirmed the hefty price tag in a statement issued in Vancouver.

"The discovery of the Lesedi La Rona was a company defining event for Lucara," said William Lamb, president and chief executive of Lucara.

"It solidified the amazing potential and rareness of the diamonds recovered at the Karowe mine."

The rough diamond had previously failed to meet its reserve price of more than $70 million at a Sotheby's auction in 2016.

Graff is already the owner of a 373-carat diamond, which was bought earlier this year and formed part of the original stone.

Lesedi La Rona means "our light" in Botswana's Tswana language. It could be cut into smaller gems for jewelry or left whole in a private collection.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Are pearls the next big jewelry statement?

In a myriad of diamond jewels and crystal accessories, there is something undoubtedly elegant about pearls. Simple, pristine and rarely obscene in excess, pearls are a timeless piece of jewelry that carries a myth of its own.

Once upon a time, they were the ultimate treasure from exotic lands in the Oriental trade, and worn only by the aristocratic ladies of the court.

These days, pearls have sort of been eclipsed by the dominance of gems in the jewel trade; but perhaps, a comeback is in the near future, as diamond sellers woe the slumping sales from younger markets.

No longer dubbed as an old-school costume piece, pearls are back in fashion, and could be the next jewelry statement across all markets. If you feel like taking a sampler of different pearls across continents, here’s our quick list of pearl offerings:

1. Mikimoto

Hailed as the pioneer for cultured pearls, Mikimoto is a luxury powerhouse for some of the most decadent, and even perfect set of pearls. 

source: news.abs-cbn.com

For Valentine's Day gift, forget diamonds: try ichnusaite

PARIS - Far rarer than diamonds or emeralds, some minerals on Earth are known only from thimbleful samples, according to a first list of 2,550 obscure minerals on Friday that could have future uses, ranging from industry to exotic Valentine's Day gifts.

Ichnusaite, fingerite, amicite and nevadaite are among truly rare minerals - defined as those known to come from five or fewer places worldwide - and form only under extremely unusual conditions, the scientists wrote.

"Diamond, ruby, emerald, and other precious gems are found at numerous localities and are sold in commercial quantities, and thus are not rare" alongside those in the study, they wrote in the journal American Mineralogist.

"If you wanted to give your fiancee a really rare ring, forget diamond. Give her Sardinian ichnusaite," Robert Hazen, a co-author of the study at the Carnegie Institution, wrote in a statement.

Ichnusaite forms from thorium and lead-like molybdenum and only one tiny whitish crystal has ever been found, in Sardinia. "Some of the other rare minerals are also only known from a thimbleful," he told Reuters.

Of 5,090 minerals known worldwide, fewer than 100 make up 99 percent of the Earth's crust. Most are from common elements such as oxygen, silicon and aluminium.

Some of the 2,550 rare minerals defined in the study might have commercial properties, from electronics to batteries, if they could be manufactured, the authors said.

Laser pointers, for instance, used to require rubies, but the rubies are now commercially manufactured. Artificial diamonds are also widely used, from industry to jewels.

The authors said some of the rare minerals required exact temperatures to grow, others formed only with rare elements, others can dissolve easily, or only occur in dangerous locations such as in volcanoes.

"They form in a perfect storm of conditions," Jesse Ausubel, co-author at the Rockefeller University, told Reuters.

The authors estimated 1,500 types of mineral were still to be found on Earth. "There are some master jewellers who would love to work with the rare minerals tiara of the 21st century," he said.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Sotheby's appraises Imelda Marcos' rare pink diamond

A rare barrel-shaped pink diamond was among the items in Imelda Marcos's jewelry collection appraised by Sotheby's on Friday in Manila.

A jewellery specialist from Sotheby's, Brett O'Connor, said the pieces, made of gem stones like diamonds, rubies and emeralds, were of high quality and good manufacture. Some appeared to be custom-made, while others were from a jeweller's stock, he said.

Manila may decide to auction the collections after the two leading auction houses -- Christie's and Sotheby's -- appraise three sets of jewellery confiscated from the Marcoses almost three decades ago.

"I think it bodes very favourably. It's a very wide and varied collection. So there's no reason to believe that it wouldn't do well at auction," O'Connor said, while refusing to disclose the recent valuation of the collections.

In 1991, the jewellery collections were valued at $6-8 million. O'Connor said some of the valuations may have increased or decreased based on fashion trends, colour and price of diamonds.

The collection appraised on Friday was seized in Hawaii, where the Marcos family was exiled.

Among the jewels was an pink diamond 24mm (15/16 inch) in diameter.

"Pink diamonds are always rare, rarer than white diamonds. The rarest is red, and then blue and green, and then pink, and then yellow, and then white. Yes, it's a rare thing, and it's a very large size, and it's a lovely old stone," O'Connor said.

Other items included a Cartier tiara, and full necklace-ring-earrings sets encrusted with precious stones like rubies, sapphires and emeralds.

The government tried to auction the jewellery in 2005, but the former beauty queen contested the move, claiming ownership of two of the collections -- one found in the presidential palace after the family's hasty departure in 1986 and the one confiscated in Hawaii.


Marcos, an elected member of Congress and best known for leaving behind more than 1,200 pairs of shoes when her family fled in 1986, has vowed to recover the family's seized assets. The government also confiscated a collection of paintings including Monets and a Picasso and is hunting for 200 missing art works.

Proceeds from a possible auction could go to human rights victims claiming compensation who filed cases against abuse under the Marcos regime, the Presidential Commission on Good Government said.

"I guess in a way it can be some sort of justice. Of course, it can never compensate what has happened to them (human rights victims). But one way or another, after 30 years, slowly, we're getting back what was taken from us."

Imelda's husband, Ferdinand, was president for nearly two decades, before he was ousted in an army-backed uprising in 1986. The dictator, who died in exile in 1989, was accused of amassing more than $10 billion while in office. The family denies their wealth was ill-gotten.

The government allowed the press to see and film some of the 750 pieces of the three collections, which were kept in a vault at the central bank.

Christie's and Sotheby's were invited by the Philippine government, and carried out the appraisal free of charge.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

London police probe massive jewel heist

LONDON, United Kingdom - Thieves may have got away with a record haul of diamonds after a brazen heist in London's diamond district netted an estimated £200 million worth (275 million euro, $300 million) of gems, media reported Wednesday.

Burglars broke into a vault at a safe deposit center in Hatton Garden, where many jewellers had left their stocks over the long Easter weekend, and cracked open 70 secure boxes, the police said.

Earlier reports put the number of boxes raided at 300.

A security guard heard an alarm go off on Friday, a bank holiday when the shops would have been closed, but shut it off when he failed to spot any sign of a disturbance, media reported Wednesday.

The Sun newspaper quoted a Hatton Garden insider saying: "It is estimated that around £200 million in diamonds, jewels and cash were stolen."

Hatton Garden is the center of London's jewellery industry and has been home to hundreds of shops and manufacturers since the 19th century. The De Beers diamond company also has offices there.

One jeweller, Michael Miller, feared he may have lost up to £50,000 of uninsured jewellery and watches in the raid, only discovered Tuesday after the holiday break which coincided with Passover, when many of the area's Jewish diamond cutters and dealers were also away.

"There is a double-door entry and a locked system to go in. You have to go through two doors to get in the place and then get into the vault," he told reporters.

He added: "I have a collection of watches I was going to give my son and that is irreplaceable."

Another, Norman Bean, added that he was "shaken" and "devastated".

Reports suggested that the thieves may have hidden inside the building, emerging after staff went home to abseil down a lift shaft and smash into the vault.

Members of the London police's Flying Squad -- the unit which deals with heists and armed robberies -- are investigating.

Roy Ramm, a former Flying Squad commander, told the BBC that the raid had a "certain old-fashioned audacity about it".

Ramm said he "would not be surprised" if the value of the heist was as high as £200 million.

But he added that the true value may never be fully revealed and suggested that, as well as legitimate items of jewellery, items kept in such vaults could include firearms and drugs.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Why Chinese brides prefer diamonds to gold

SHANGHAI - Under a black-and-white framed photo of the New York skyline, a bottle of Moet & Chandon champagne cools in the private bridal salon at Tiffany & Co's flagship Shanghai store, while white roses and love poems set the mood for China's Romeo to pop the question to his Juliet.

The room, dotted with splashes of the jeweler's iconic eggshell blue, has been busy of late, as young Chinese, drawn by the allure of diamonds, increasingly choose the sparkling gems over traditional gold baubles to mark their marriage vows.

China's diamond market, now the world's second largest after the United States, has more than tripled to $22.8 billion over the last five years, according to data from market research firm Euromonitor, steadily gobbling up market share from gold and far outstripping the growth rate in China's 465 billion yuan ($76 billion) jewelry sector.

"(In China) we now have more and more young people making their declarations and proposal ceremonies within our bridal rooms," said Stephane Lafay, Tiffany's head of Asia Pacific and Japan, who said couples were attracted to the romantic image of the jeweler's well-known "little blue box".

At the centre of the trend are China's 13 million brides each year, who are increasingly demanding diamonds.

"All along, my husband and I always thought that we would buy a diamond ring, so it never crossed my mind he might not. I think I'd have been pretty cross if he hadn't," said Zhou Lijuan, 27, an accountant in a state-owned company in Shanghai, with a 50,000 yuan ($8,200) diamond ring.

To be sure, gold is still hugely popular in China, both as jewelry and as an investment. The World Gold Council said earlier this year that China was set to challenge India's position as the world's top gold consumer, with 2013 demand soaring more than 20 percent to 1,000 tonnes.

But diamonds have steadily increased as a share of China's overall jewelry market, accounting for just under one third now from one quarter five years ago, according to Euromonitor. This has propelled Greater China, including Hong Kong, to the second largest diamond jewelry market after the United States, according to Bain & Co, and along with India, it is expected to be the main driver of growth for the $72 billion global market.

The appeal of diamonds, long linked with wedding bells in Europe and America, hasn't always been so strong in China, where the bride-to-be's family was often responsible for supplying a gold-based dowry of rings, bracelets and other trinkets.

"In my mum's generation, women were really just interested in gold. The woman's family would prepare a gold bracelet themselves, and the man's side would arrange a golden betrothal gift," added Zhou, who got married in 2012.

But tastes are changing.

China's modern consumers have much more exposure to Western culture than their parents, including books, films and television that often involve heroines or romantic leads receiving or wearing a diamond ring.

"Western films have a kind of 'bridge' effect, so when Chandler buys a diamond ring for Monica in 'Friends', it really left a deep impression," said Lily Cai, 30, a civil servant in Shanghai, referring to the hit U.S. television series.

"A diamond ring is a symbol of love, and the larger the diamond the deeper the love," she added. She now has a diamond ring from Chinese jewelers Chow Tai Fook Jewellery Group Ltd which cost 43,000 yuan.

SPARKLING ATTRACTION

The sparkle of China's diamond industry has tempted jewelers, miners and dealers alike.

Global auction house Sotheby's is set to offer a huge white diamond in Hong Kong at the start of October, which would be the most expensive white diamond ever sold at auction if it hits its $28 million lower pre-sale target.

"From 2006 until now we've seen a threefold increase, close to 200 percent, of Asian buyers purchasing jewelry worldwide. What they've really focused on, of course, is diamonds," said Patti Wong, chairman of Sotheby's Asia, who added Chinese buyers were showing increasing confidence about snapping up the most expensive gems.

De Beers, the largest diamond producer by value and majority-owned by miner Anglo American Plc, sees China as driving growth over the next four years. It has five diamond-focused outlets in China with more set to open this year.

The incentive is clear. Tiffany's Lafay said over the last 20 years, the number of people buying diamond engagement rings has risen from less than 1 percent to more than 50 percent in urban China. More than half of the country's 1.3 billion population now live in cities.

Even traditionally gold-focused jewelers, such as China's Chow Tai Fook, are looking to up exposure to diamonds. The world's biggest jewelry retailer by market value, it recently struck a deal with Russian miner AK Alrosa OAO to ensure its diamond supply.

"Mainland Chinese are becoming more westernised, so they tend to select diamond rings for their engagement proposal and wedding," said Chow Tai Fook's managing director Kent Wong.

China will also be a critical market for Rio Tinto Plc's diamond business, after the world's No. 3 miner scrapped a planned sale of the unit earlier this year. Rio Tinto has now set up links with Chow Tai Fook, and last week invited 100 jewelry experts in Hong Kong to see its latest diamond haul.

"Going forward China will be the engine for growth in global retail diamond jewelry consumption," said Jean-Marc Lieberherr, managing director of Rio Tinto's diamonds and minerals division. He forecast low double-digit growth in China and said the firm was directing more of its production into the Chinese market.

China's bridegrooms may not be quite so convinced as their demanding brides, but the wives-to-be usually win in the end, conceded Yu Peidi, 27, a salesman in Shanghai, who proposed to his now-wife in 2011.

"Women are always getting together to compare, telling friends and colleagues that their husband has bought them such and such a diamond ring. Just talking about having a diamond seems to keep them happy," he said.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com