London: A 76-carat flawless diamond from India`s famous Golconda mines broke world record by fetching a whooping 16.9 million euro at an auction in Geneva.
The cushion shaped diamond of perfect D colour from the ancient mines, where the famous Koh-i-Noor and Blue Hope diamond originated, fetched a record price at an auction late last night, Guardian reported quoting an announcement by the Christie`s.
"It is a world record for a Golconda diamond and a world record price per carat for a colourless diamond," Francois Curiel, director of the international jewellery department at Christie`s, told reporters.
"It is comparable in its noble lineage and superb quality to the legendary Koh-i-noor," he said, adding that it was sold to an anonymous bidder and may apparently be on its way to a museum.
The rare colourless diamond, weighing 76-carat was named after Austria`s Archduke Joseph August, a prince of the Hungarian line of the Hapsburgs, who reportedly deposited it in a bank vault in 1933.
"Three years later it was sold to a European banker, and kept in France, locked away in a safe deposit box, where fortunately it remained undiscovered during the second world war," the auction house said.
It surfaced at auction in 1961 and again at Christie`s in November 1993, netting 4m at the time. The stone was subsequently "slightly recut".
PTI
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