A stunning blue diamondbroke a world record today, fetching a price of 6.2 million British pounds (about $9.6 million), or about $1.8 million per carat, according to auctioneer Bonhams.
The diamond is a brilliant blue and is set in a ring made by Italian jeweler Bulgariaround 1965. The high price likely comes from the diamond's unusual color as well as its posh setting: Bulgari is a company beloved by the Hollywood glitterati, and blue diamondsare rarely up for sale. This particular blue diamond also happens to be a large chunk of ice at 5.3 carets.
The diamond is a "fancy deep-blue" stone, terminology that describes its intensity of color. The blue sheen comes from boron atomsintermixed with the carbonthat makes up the diamond's structure. According to Bonhams, less than 1 percent of all diamonds mined are blue diamonds.
"Blue diamonds, especially those over 5.00 carats, are extremely rare to see on the market and continue to be highly sought-after," Jean Ghika, the director of Bonhams' European jewelry department, said in a statement. "We are honored to have handled the sale of such a unique gem."
The previous record for the price of a diamond per carat was $1.68 million, according to Bonhams.
The most famous blue diamond in the world is the Hope Diamond, which now resides at the Smithsonian Natural History Museum. Crudely cut, the Hope Diamond was 112 and 3/15 carats and likely came from a mine in Golconda, India, according to the Smithsonian. King Louis XIV bought the diamond from a French merchant who picked it up in India and later had it recut into a 67 and 1/8-carat stone. The diamond remained in the hands of French royalty until 1792, when it was stolen during an episode of unrest and looting. [Sinister Sparkle: 13 'Cursed' Gems]
The diamond's path then becomes foggy until 1839, when it popped up in the gem collection of banking heir Henry Philip Hope. The diamond then passed through the hands of multiple private sellers, gracing a tiara at one point before being set as a pendant. The Hope Diamond was donated to the Smithsonian in 1958. Three-hundred-plus years of recutting has whittled its weight down to 45.54 carats.
Blue diamonds aren't the only unusual color out there. Very rarely, miners unearth red diamonds, which are sometimes mistaken for garnets or rubies. Only three red diamondsweigh more than 5 carats, including the Kazanjian Red Diamond, which went on display at the American Museum of Natural History in 2010.
据美国生活科学网4月26日报道，英国宝龙拍卖行称，4月24日，一颗惊艳蓝钻以620万英镑（约960万美元）的价格拍出，每克拉价格高达180万美元，刷新了此前每克拉168万美元的世界纪录。
这颗钻石色泽呈孔雀蓝，大概在1965年，意大利珠宝商宝格丽将它镶嵌在一枚戒指中。拍卖价高昂很可能是因为其独特的色泽和不俗的来历。宝格丽是好莱坞影视名流钟爱的珠宝品牌，而且蓝钻在市面上十分罕见，更何况是一块5.3克拉的大钻石。
根据色彩强度，这颗钻石学名为“花式深蓝”钻石，其蓝色光泽由硼原子与碳原子结构的混合而产生。宝龙拍卖行指出，在所有开采的钻石中，只有不到1%是蓝钻。
“蓝钻，尤其是超过5克拉的蓝钻在市场上是极为罕见的，也一直备受追捧。”宝龙拍卖行欧洲珠宝部门的主管让•吉卡在声明中说，“我们很荣幸能够拍卖这颗稀世钻石。”
据悉，世界上现存最著名的蓝钻是“希望之星”， 现藏于美国首都华盛顿史密森尼国立自然历史博物馆。据博物馆称，该钻石可能来自印度戈尔康达的矿山，经粗加工后重达112.2克拉。一位法国商人在印度得 到这颗钻石后，将其切割成一颗67.125克拉的蓝钻，卖给了法国国王路易十四。此后，钻石一直在法国皇族手中，直到1792年，它在一次动乱中被盗，从 此下落不明。
1839年，这颗蓝钻的下落终于有了眉目，它出现在银行家亨利•菲利普•霍普的珠宝收藏中。随后，又经多个买家之手。它曾一度被用作冕状头饰，后改为吊坠。1958年，“希望之星”被捐给了美国史密森尼博物院。历经300余年的数次切割后，该钻石只剩下45.54克拉。
当然，除蓝钻之外，红钻也极为罕见。有时候，矿工会把挖到的红钻误认作石榴石或红宝石。世界上只有三颗红钻超过5克拉，其中有一颗名为“卡赞金红钻”，2010年曾在美国自然历史博物馆展出。