The largest and most valuable black diamond is on the show for sale at Sotheby’s premises in Dubai.
“The Enigma,” is a 555.55-carat gemstone, with a fancy black natural color. It considers as the world’s largest and toughest diamond. Experts thought that it might have dropped from out of space millions of years ago.
“We date them to approximately 2.6 to 3.8 billion years old and we believe they have extraterrestrial origins.” Sophie Stevens, jewelry specialist at Sotheby’s Dubai. Some expect that the diamond could fetch at least $6.8 million at the auction where it will be from Feb. 3 to Feb. 9.
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How old is the black diamond?
Sotheby’s, the 277-year-old auction house, will accept cryptocurrencies like bitcoin, Ethereum, as well as the stable coin USDC for the sale of “The Enigma.” The diamond was first listed by Guinness World Records in 2006.
This is the first time the diamond is available for the public to see. After Dubai, the diamond will travel to Los Angeles and then London. Then it will be put on sale in an auction where it will be a single-lot online auction, with no reserve price for it.
The 555.55-carat jewel was a rough stone in the 1990s, then its unknown owner cut it with 55 facets. Its current shape was inspired by the Hamsa, which is a sign of power, protection, and strength. It is also considered a technical feat for one of the toughest diamonds in the world.
“The shape of the diamond is based on the Middle Eastern palm symbol of the Khamsa, which stands for strength and … protection,” Sophie Stevens said. “Khamsa in Arabic means five, so there’s a nice theme of the number five running throughout the diamond.”
Till now, the most expensive diamond is the Pink Star which sold for $71 million at a Sotheby’s auction in 2017.
