Sotheby’s is offering one of the rarest diamonds ever to grace the jewellery world – a 102.39-carat D-colour flawless oval diamond – in a stand-alone, single-lot live auction scheduled for October 5, 2020 in Hong Kong. 

The diamond will unprecedentedly be sold “without reserve,” which means that the winning bid is the highest bid, regardless of its amount or the intrinsic value of the diamond itself. 

According to Sotheby’s, this approach marks a first in auction history where a diamond of this calibre is offered in such a way.

Patti Wong, chairman of Sotheby’s Asia, commented, “This innovative sale seems to us the best way to introduce this exceptional diamond to the world in the current circumstances where travel is restricted and act as a great indicator of the vitality of the demand.”

This diamond was cut from a 271-carat rough discovered in the Victor Mine in Ontario, Canada in 2018. Following its discovery, the rough was cut and polished for over a year by Diacore.

At present, only seven D-colour internally flawless or flawless white diamonds weighing more than 100 carats have been sold at auction, making this special lot the eighth. Five of these seven gems were sold by Sotheby’s. 

The 102.39-carat diamond is the second-largest oval diamond of its kind to be offered at auction; surpassed only by the record-breaking 118.28-carat diamond sold at Sotheby’s Hong Kong in 2013.

Bidding opens online from September 15. The diamond may be viewed by appointment prior to auction in Beijing, Shanghai, New York, Taipei and Hong Kong.