The Natural Diamond Council focuses on colored diamonds to differentiate natural stones from lab-grown ones. Buoyant auction prices for vivid and intense stones—supported by global economic turmoil—draws further attention to this segment of the business.
As the trade group for major players, including De Beers and Petra, the Natural Diamond Council is the industry heavyweight. Their consumer-focused Only Natural Diamonds website helps to interpret commercial strategy in the gemstone trade. A current thread: Colored diamonds offer an approach to greater exclusivity.
The website post “Three Rare Diamonds That Stopped Gem Experts in Their Tracks” could be construed as a triumph of marketing jargon. The article is still laden with useful perspective. Certainly, the VIMP Diamond Ring, Cullinan Blue Diamond Necklace, and DeYoung Red Diamond command attention. Each is iconic.
Yellow Stones. Spotlighting a new-to-market yellow diamond, the “Vision Impossible Made Possible” asset—designed by Mouawad—is over 67 carats. The larger, rough crystal was discovered in South Africa in 2022. This round brilliant cut gem has yet to be listed for auction, although it was on public display at the Dubai Diamond Exhibition in 2024.
Blue Stones. The Cullinan Blue Necklace has now ascended to the Smithsonian. It is a homage to the nine diamonds cut from the original Cullinan rough. That legendary stone weighed a massive 3,106 carats when it was mined in 1905. Cullinan I, the largest cut from this stunning discovery, is now part of the British Royal Scepter, while Cullinan II is centered in the Imperial State Crown.
Red Stones. Also in the Smithsonian is the DeYoung Red Diamond, one of the largest gemstones in this group of diamonds, weighing a comparatively modest five carats. The centerpiece is so rare that many believed the diamond to be a modest garnet when it was mounted in a scarf pin in the early 1940s by a Boston jeweler. Natural red diamonds are considered exceptionally rare.
Readers should forgive the animated language in the Only Natural Diamonds article. “These stones are so rare, so profoundly unique, that we may never see anything like them again. These are not simply beautiful jewels but the result of once-in-an-eternity natural circumstances.” The overcharged text can detract from the sense of timelessness otherwise embedded in the story.
In the luxury economy, the major auction houses are benefiting from new-found interest in colored diamonds. While these assets have always been in demand, the flood of outsized lab-grown diamonds now in circulation creates a greater level of perceived rarity for these natural stones. To cite one example: Christie’s just sold the Marie-Thérèse Pink, a ten-carat purple-pink diamond, for $14 million, nearly double its pre-auction estimate. ■
Our Vantage Point: For the traditional diamond business, a shift in emphasis to colored stones is paying dividends. The legacies of certain exceptional diamonds sharpen this focus.
Learn more at Only Natural Diamonds
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Image shows the Cullinan Blue Necklace. Credit: Smithsonian.
