Why Pink Diamonds Are Fetching Millions at Auction

A unique feature of Eden Rose is the fact that it displays a highly coveted, seldom seen shade of pink. Many pink diamonds—including those that have likewise fetched millions at auction—can display secondary hues of purple, orange, or gray, but the Eden Rose is singular for the absence of any undertones. It is, as Christie’s describes it, a “pure pink,” rendering it exceptionally rare.

“The uniqueness of the Eden Rose stands not only in its rarity but also in its exquisite round brilliant cut, a technique typically reserved for white diamonds to enhance their brilliance,” Rahul Kadakia, Christie’s international head of jewelry tells Galerie. “The meticulous hand-cutting process further accentuates its individuality.”

It’s not uncommon for pink diamonds to command twice, even three times, the price of Eden Rose and Martian Pink, making some pinks more precious than modernist art masterpieces. Consider the Picasso painting Homme à la Pipe (1964), which sold for $17.4 million at Sotheby’s London earlier this year. Of course this is an apples to oranges comparison, but there are reports of declining art sales while the fervor for pink diamonds is robust to say the least.

So what makes a pink diamond so valuable? It mostly comes down to rarity. They are incredibly hard to come by—the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) estimates that only one out of every 10,000 carats of cut-and-polished diamonds display what’s known as fancy color, with pinks accounting for just .01% of the world’s total diamond production. 

The investment value makes fancy color diamonds irresistible to certain connoisseurs, diamantaires, and investors, who tend to see colored diamonds as a store of value (especially during times of geopolitical turmoil and economic uncertainty).

While Christie’s Eden Rose sale is the latest to make headlines, it is one of many important pink diamonds to have to come to auction in recent years. Last month, a saturated Barbie pink stone weighing 6.2 cts sold for $12 million at a Phillips sale in Geneva. At the May 2024 Phillips Geneva sale, the headline-making pink diamond was offered in a ring flanked by two kite-shaped, white diamonds.

In 2023, Sotheby’s sold a 10.57 ct. internally flawless cushion-cut fancy vivid purplish pink diamond known as the Eternal Pink—billed as the “most significant” pink ever to come to market—for $30 million. The Eternal Pink headlined Sotheby’s New York Magnificent Jewels sale in 2023, selling price for $34.8 million. 

In 2018, Christie’s head of jewelry, Rahul Kadakia, said of the 18.96 ct. pink diamond now known as the Winston Pink Legacy, which sold for $50 million, that “the saturation, the intensity of this stone is as good as it gets in a colored diamond.” The Pink Promise was described by Christie’s as “the Picasso of the pink diamond world.” The 14.93-carat fancy vivid pink stone sold for more than $30 million in 2017. Sold by Christie’s Hong Kong in 2010, the Perfect Pink weighed 14.23 cts. and was mounted in a ring flanked by rectangular shaped diamonds, fetching $23,165,968. 

The world record for highest price ever paid for any gem at auction is the Pink Star, which sold for $71.2 million at Sotheby’s Hong Kong in 2017. These hammer prices are almost as impressive as the gems themselves. But is it the rarity alone that drives the demand? The record-breaking Pink Star was a 59.6-carat, flawless, fancy vivid pink diamond

You probably can’t discount the Barbie effect. And the color has always evoked notions of romance; princesses, secret gardens, and clouds of cotton candy. In other words, a pink diamond ring (or pendant or brooch) is a wearable escapist fantasy. There is also the fact that the world’s pink diamond supply is finite—the Argyle mine in Australia was the biggest producer of the stone but closed in 2020. So serious collectors don’t sleep on pinks when they pop up for sale and they buy knowing their value will appreciate over time.

Finally, unlike a painting that must hang on a wall (or languish in storage), a pink diamond is an investment you can wear, enjoy and show off to your friends. And when you’re not wearing it? Please make sure it’s locked in a safe.