Auction house Sotheby's reported that it has acquired the 59.6-carat "Pink Star" diamond for $60 million, after diamond cutter Isaac Wolf failed to pay $83 million for the flawless gem.
Wolf outbid three rivals for the "Pink Star" at the Geneva auction, offering about $83.2 million, which was a world record for any gem sold at auction. Patrick McClymont, Sotheby’s CEO, said that the auction house is still talking with Wolf about the future of the diamond. As a result subsequent buyer default, Sotheby's was forced under its auction contract to buy back the diamond. The diamond is now part of the Sotheby's inventory, valued at approximately $72 million.
The ‘Pink Star’ was sourced from a 132.50-carat rough diamond recovered by De Beers in 1999, to be later cut and polished by Steinmetz Diamonds.