South African blue diamond Cullinan Dream sold 25.36 mln US$ at Christie’s

The Cullinan Dream, exceptionally rare blue diamond thus named for its captivating and celestial beauty, has been sold 25,365,000 dollars US at Christie’s auction on June 9 at Rockefeller Center in New York.

Petra Diamonds Ltd, a leading independent diamond mining group with a premium listing on the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange, on June 9, disclosed the sale of the very rare blue diamond classified as Type IIb.

Cullinan Dream is one of the four polished pieces that derived from the cutting of a 122.52 carat rough blue diamond discovered at the Cullinan mine, near Pretoria, South Africa, in June 2014.

Petra Diamonds acquired a majority stake in the mine in 2008 and should receive a 15 pct share in the Cullinan Dream sales proceeds after expenses.

Located at the foothills of the Magaliesberg mountain range, 37 kilometres north-east of Pretoria in South Africa, the Cullinan mine is best known for the discovery in 1905 of a 3,106 carats rough diamond, the largest ever found.