Red Diamond Unsold, But Not Forgotten

Published on 04/05/10

A 0.82-carat red diamond went unsold at a Sotheby's auction in Australia earlier this week, but that doesn't mean the stone is set to languish in a vault without a buyer, news reports indicate.

In an earlier media release, Sotheby's estimated the value of the rare fancy purplish-red stone, set in a platinum ring flanked by round brilliant colorless diamonds and two fancy blue diamonds, at between 700,000 and 1 million Australian dollars (between about $654,906 and $935,580).

The diamond is from Rio Tinto's Argyle mine in Western Australia, which is known for its production of pinks and the occasional rare red.