Sotheby’s to auction record $60 million ‘flawless’ pink diamond

A flawless 59.60-carat pink diamond is expected to raise more than $60 million at an auction in Switzerland.

Sotheby’s will offer the gem – called The Pink Star — at its Magnificent Jewels sale on Nov. 13 in Geneva, the auction house said Wednesday.

The oval-cut stone, which was mined by De Beers in Africa in 1999, is the largest internally flawless vivid pink diamond ever graded by the Geological Institute of America, Sotheby’s said.

And it could be the most expensive diamond ever sold at auction.

“It is difficult to exaggerate the rarity of vivid pink diamonds weighing only five carats, so this 59.60-carat stone is simply off any scale, and passes, I believe, into the ranks of the earth’s greatest natural treasures,” said David Bennett, chairman of Sotheby’s in Switzerland.

The diamond was originally called “The Steinmetz Pink.” It was sold to a private buyer in 2007 for an undisclosed sum.

The previous world record price for a gem at auction was $46.16 million. That was for a 24.78-carat diamond, known as The Graff Pink, sold by Sotheby’s in November 2010.