Next week Rio Tinto's Argyle mine, which produces 90 per cent of the world's pink diamonds, will close, sparking a buy-up from wealthy collectors and investors around the world.
Since mining began at Argyle in 1983, the mine has produced more than 865 million carats of rough diamonds, becoming the world's largest producer of coloured diamonds and virtually the sole source of a very small but consistent source of rare pink diamonds.
London-based jewellery historian Vivienne Becker remembers when the first pink diamonds hit the international market in the 1980s.
"They were a colour and quality that we had never been seen before," Ms Becker said.
"Before that pink diamonds had been found only very randomly and sporadically.
"They'd always been the ultimate treasures of kings and rulers, princes and potentates and then suddenly there was this a consistent source of diamonds of a real deep, emotive, sugary purplish-pink.
"It was completely unprecedented and there was massive excitement in the industry."
Unlike white diamonds, which are graded based on their size, cut and clarity, the value of pink diamonds is determined by the vibrancy of their bubblegum hue.
Investment value
Pink diamonds have out-performed virtually all of your traditional asset classes over the past 10 to 15 years.
They've done better than the stock market, property, precious metals and really do present a very stable asset class.
The average investment growth of all Argyle pink diamonds is around 15%, reaching up to 20% plus in some cases. It's important to note that due to the rarity and high value of these pink diamonds, prices generally increase monthly.
An investment-worthy stone started at around
$20,000 and could attract up to $3 million for a single carat.
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