A dazzling 24-carat pink diamond with a remarkable 70-year family history is preparing for its first-ever auction appearance. Known as "The Bulgari Pink," the emerald-cut gem will headline Christie’s Magnificent Jewels sale in Geneva on November 10, with an estimate of $12 million to $18 million. Its story spans India’s legendary diamond fields, the glamour of postwar Rome, and generations of private ownership by a distinguished European noble family.
According to family lore, the rough diamond was acquired in India during the 1950s by the current owner’s great-grandfather. Its precise origin has not been confirmed, but Christie’s notes that its exceptional qualities evoke historic diamonds from India’s fabled Golconda mines, which supplied some of the world’s most celebrated gems. The stone was subsequently entrusted to Bulgari in Rome, where it was transformed into the elegant ring we see today.
The diamond’s Fancy Intense Pink color grade is a major part of its appeal. Pink diamonds owe their distinctive hue to distortions in their crystal structure that affect how light travels through the stone. The Bulgari Pink’s rectangular step cut, commonly known as an emerald cut, gives it a sophisticated architectural appearance, with broad, mirror-like facets that showcase its color and clarity.
It is also classified as a Type IIa diamond, a chemically pure category representing less than 2% of gem-quality diamonds. Its 24-carat size, pink color and refined cut make it an extraordinary combination. Fancy Intense Pink sits just below Fancy Vivid Pink, the highest color-saturation grade in this classification, adding another intriguing dimension to the gem’s auction prospects.
Bulgari’s role in the diamond’s transformation connects it to one of jewelry’s most glamorous eras. During the 1950s, Rome emerged as an international center of postwar sophistication, earning the nickname “Hollywood on the Tiber” as major film productions attracted movie stars to Cinecittà Studios. Bulgari’s boutique on Via Condotti became a social and cultural meeting place for celebrated couples, including Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton, and Audrey Hepburn and Mel Ferrer.
The Bulgari Pink remained in the same family’s private hands for more than seven decades, never previously appearing at public auction. Christie’s will offer the ring during its November 10 sale at Geneva’s Four Seasons Hotel des Bergues, with the jewel scheduled for public viewing November 5–10.
Other Fancy Intense Pink diamonds have commanded impressive prices. In June 2024, the 10.20-carat, internally flawless Eden Rose sold at Christie’s for $13.29 million. In November 2023, the 15.48-carat Pink Supreme achieved $10.81 million at Christie’s Hong Kong.
Fancy Vivid Pink diamonds have reached even more astonishing heights. The 59.60-carat CTF Pink Star sold for approximately $71.2 million at Sotheby’s Hong Kong in 2017, setting a world auction record for a gemstone. In 2022, the 11.15-carat Williamson Pink Star brought in $57.7 million, setting a record price per carat for a gemstone.
Credit: Image courtesy of Christie's.