2: The Hancock Red: A record-breaking wonder of nature
In April 1987 Christie’s offered a very small diamond, weighing 0.95 carats, as its top lot in New York. What made this diamond special was its colour: Fancy Purple-Red.
Only one in 100,000 diamonds qualifies as a ‘Fancy’ colour. These odds lengthen exponentially for red diamonds, which are so rare that experienced diamond dealers would consider themselves extremely lucky to handle more than three in the course of a lifetime.
This 0.95 carat (only 0.19 grams) wonder of nature was part of the collection of Mr Hancock, a farmer from Montana, who was rumoured to have purchased the diamond for $13,500 in 1956.
The Hancock Red was offered for sale in 1987 with an estimate of $100,000-150,000. It sold for a remarkable $880,000, or $926,000 per carat, and broke all records in the process.
Content courtesy: Christie’s
