Largest fancy intense pink diamond could fetch $30M

raj pink 1
CNN  — 

The world’s largest known fancy intense pink diamond could sell for up to $30 million at a November auction.

The 37.30-carat Raj Pink, which was unveiled in London earlier this month, will headline Sotheby’s Magnificent Jewels and Noble Jewels sale in Geneva on Nov. 15.

“The discovery of any pink diamond is exceptional, but The Raj Pink’s remarkable size and intensity of color places it in the rarefied company of the most important pink diamonds known,” David Bennett, who heads Sotheby’s International Jewelery Division, said in a statement.

Pink diamonds are extremely rare, making up less than 0.02% of the diamonds submitted to the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) each year, according to the auction house.

“Fancy intense” designates pink diamonds that are quite strong in color. According to the GIA, “fancy vivid” and “fancy deep” diamonds – which are stronger in color than fancy intense diamonds – command the highest prices.

The Graff Pink diamond holds the current record for a fancy intense pink diamond sold at auction. Once owned by American jeweler Harry Winston, the 24.78-carat stone sold for $46.1 million at a Sotheby’s Geneva sale in 2010.

The record for the most expensive jewel sold at auction is currently held by another pink diamond, aptly named the Pink Star. The 59.60-carat, fancy vivid pink sold for $71.2 million in April.

Other highlights from the Magnificent Jewels and Noble Jewels sale include two fancy intense yellow diamonds weighing 82.47 and 102.54 carats, and a fancy vivid blue diamond ring.