Dubai to witness auction of rare 242-carat rough diamond by Russia’s Alrosa
Russian state-controlled diamond producer Alrosa will offer a rare 242-carat rough diamond -- one of the biggest gem-quality stones it has mined
this century -- for sale at a Dubai auction on March 22, the company said on Friday.
The crystal-clear diamond is the size of a small egg. Alrosa, the world’s largest producer of rough diamonds, competes with Anglo-American unit De Beers.
For all the latest headlines follow our Google News channel online or via the app.
“Rough diamonds, which potentially allow for cutting a polished diamond larger than 100 carats, are extremely rare in nature. Even less often are such gems tendered,” Evgeny Agureev, Alrosa’s head of sales, said in a statement.

Alrosa last offered a rough diamond of such a size at open auction five years ago. Russian law states that the miner must first offer its rough diamonds larger than 50 carats to the Gokhran state repository.

The diamond was held back until now to mark Alrosa’s 100th international auction.
The auction price will start from $2 million.
Read more:
Rare, flawless 102-carat diamond could fetch up to $30 million at Sotheby’s auction
‘New era of trade relations’: Dubai, Israel diamond exchanges sign agreement
Extremely rare, purple-pink Russian diamond up for auction, worth $38 mln
-
Rarely seen Van Gogh painting of Montmartre exhibited ahead of auction
A rare painting by Dutch impressionist master Vincent van Gogh of a street scene in the Parisian neighborhood of Montmartre will be publicly displayed ... Art and culture -
Marie Antoinette’s silk shoe goes up for auction in Versailles
A silk shoe that belonged to Marie Antoinette, the last queen of France who was executed during the French Revolution, will go up for auction on ... Variety -
Not forever: World’s biggest pink diamond mine in Western Australia closes
The world’s largest pink diamond mine has shut its doors after exhausting its reserves of the expensive gems, global mining giant Rio Tinto said on ... Variety -
Extremely rare, purple-pink Russian diamond up for auction, worth $38 mln
An extremely rare, vivid purple-pink diamond mined in Russia is expected to fetch up to $38 million when it goes under the hammer on November 11, the ... Variety -
‘New era of trade relations’: Dubai, Israel diamond exchanges sign agreement
Diamond exchanges of Dubai and Israel signed an agreement of collaboration on Thursday that will see the establishment of reciprocal offices in each ... Economy -
Rare, flawless 102-carat diamond could fetch up to $30 million at Sotheby’s auction
One of the world’s rarest diamonds, about the size of an egg or a large lollipop, is going up for auction next month and is expected to fetch $12 ... Variety