The Bulgari Laguna Blu will have its Global Premiere at the Met Gala on May 1
Sotheby’s Presents – The Bulgari Laguna Blu: The Largest Blue Diamond in a Bulgari Jewel And the Most Valuable Gem by Bulgari Ever to be Sold Estimated to Achieve in Excess of 22 Million CHF/ $25 Million
The Bulgari Laguna Blu will have its Global Premiere at the Met Gala on May 1 before being Exhibited and Sold at Sotheby’s Geneva Luxury Week
Created in 1970, this exceptional diamond has stayed in the same European collection ever since.
This is the first time it is offered for sale
“The Bulgari Laguna Blu is an extraordinary gem in every way. At 11.16 carat, this unmodified pear-shaped blue diamond has received the highest grade for a blue diamond by the Gemological Institute of America acknowledging its mesmerising colour and hue. This true wonder of nature was selected by Bulgari, the prestigious Roman Jewellery Maison, over fifty years ago, to create a ring for a discerning private collector who has kept it ever since. The Bulgari Laguna Blu diamond is bound to become the object of any collector’s dream and we are delighted that it will be first premiered at the always highly anticipated Met Gala’s red carpet.” Olivier Wagner, Head of Jewellery, Sotheby’s Geneva
With the presentation of the Bulgari Laguna Blu – an 11.16 carat blue diamond, one of the most remarkable diamonds ever sold by Bulgari and its most valuable gem ever, Sotheby’s completes a trilogy of unique and extraordinary coloured gemstones sale announcements following the recent unveiling of the Eternal Pink (estimate in excess of $35 Million), the most valuable purplish pink diamond ever to appear at auction, and the Estrella de FURA 55.22 (estimate in excess of $30 Million), the largest ruby ever to come to market.
Whilst both the Eternal Pink and Estrella de FURA 55.22 will be highlighting Sotheby’s Magnificent Jewels auction in New York on 8 June, the Bulgari Laguna Blu will star in Sotheby’s Luxury Week in Geneva from May 12 to May 16.
The Bulgari Laguna Blu is a gemstone like no other, boasting an exceptional colour saturation and a vibrant oceanic blue, with provenance from a Distinguished European Collection.
Created in 1970 by Bulgari as a ring – at a time when Bulgari was undergoing some of its most significant transformations and emerging as the most influential and innovative Italian high jewellery house in the world – the Bulgari Laguna Blu is a rarity three times over:
A 11.16 carat Fancy Vivid Blue Diamond – Blue diamonds, of any kind and any size, are among the rarest coloured diamonds. A fabulous accident of nature, blue diamonds are produced by the presence of the trace element boron within the diamond’s carbon structure during its formation deep in the earth’s core.
Blue diamonds over 5 carats are rare, those over 10 carats rarer still. Any blue diamond qualifying as Fancy Vivid – the brightest hue a diamond can display – over 10 carats are extremely rare indeed: fewer than ten Fancy Vivid Blue diamonds over 10 carats have come to auction anywhere in the world in the past few decades, four of which were sold by Sotheby’s.
A jewel Signed by Bulgari – The Bulgari Laguna Blu was initially mounted as a ring by Bulgari for a special commission by the original owner with a pear-shaped stone – the third largest pear-shaped Fancy Vivid blue diamond ever to come to auction.
In 1970, Bulgari was at the zenith of its osmosis with Hollywood glamour, as epitomised by the demonstrable fondness charismatic and influential stars like Elizabeth Taylor, Ingrid Bergman, Anita Ekberg, and Sophia Loren, among many others, had for Bulgari jewels.
By the mid-1950’s, Bulgari had started to introduce more daring chromatic combinations of precious and coloured stones gracing designs both borrowing and celebrating Roman artistic and architectural heritage.
Cornflower blue sapphires or forest-green emeralds might find themselves associated with richly saturated citrines, amethysts, or tourmalines in one and the same Bulgari piece.
This trend for boldness in colour associations and sculptural jewellery was unleashed across the 1970s and beyond, becoming one of Bulgari’s most enduring and identifiable aesthetics.
Bulgari mounted the Bulgari Laguna Blu into an elegant, pared down ring, exposing all the facets of the stone to their best vantage point, demonstrating the jeweller’s ability to maximise the intrinsic beauty of an exceptional diamond.
Unseen and unmodified – The Bulgari Laguna Blu has remained in the same family ever since its acquisition in 1970s. Therefore, it would have only been seen by a privileged few since its creation before being offered for sale this May.
By virtue of the era in which it was cut, another rare quality of the Bulgari Laguna Blu lies in the fact it is an unmodified stone.
In the fifty years since the Laguna Blu was facetted, diamond cutting technology has progressed to enhance coloured diamonds even further by faceting them as modified brilliant cuts in order to increase the perceived saturation of colour. So, this 1970 diamond may have more dazzle to release yet.
The Bulgari Laguna Blu diamond will be first unveiled at the forthcoming Met Gala on 1 May, before going to Geneva where it will be exhibited at the Mandarin Oriental from 11 May, ahead of its sale during Sotheby’s Luxury Week in Geneva this May.
The Bulgari Laguna Blu is part of a wider collection by the same consignor which includes another two white diamonds signed Bulgari, from the same early 1970s period:
– a pear-shaped diamond weighing 12.08 carats (estimate CHF 550,000-640,000 / US$ 600,000-700,000);
– a step-cut diamond weighing 18.78 carats (estimate CHF 830,000-1,285,000 / US$ 900,000-1,400,000).
The collection is completed by a fourth stone signed Pederzani, a pear-shaped white diamond weighing 8.33 carats (estimate CHF 325,000-460,000 / US$ 350,000-500,000).
Blue Diamonds at Sotheby’s
While a very small number of important blue diamonds were sold at auction over the last few decades, it was not until 2007 when the landmark Sotheby’s auction in Hong Kong sold a 6.04 carat, internally flawless emerald-cut Fancy Vivid Blue diamond for a record price of US$1,321,495 per carat, breaking the 20-year-old record held by the famous ‘Hancock Red’, and propelling all sizable Fancy Vivid Blue diamonds to new market levels of a minimum of US$1,000,000 per carat.
Since then, blue diamonds at auction have had an admirable auction track record. However, all previous prices were totally eclipsed first in 2014 by the Mellon Blue Diamond at Sotheby’s New York, now renamed the ‘Josie Blue’, which sold for US$32.6 million (US$3,348,205 per carat).
In 2015, records shattered again when Sotheby’s Geneva sold ‘The Blue Moon of Josephine’, a 12.03 carat cushion-shaped Internally Flawless Fancy Vivid Blue diamond for US$48.5 million (US$4,028,941 per carat), which established the former price-per-carat auction record for any diamond or gemstone.
Most recently, in April 2022, a significant new benchmark for the diamond market was set at Sotheby’s in Hong Kong, when the extraordinary ‘De Beers Blue’ – a 15.10 step-cut Fancy Vivid Blue diamond, the largest of its kind ever to appear at auction – sold for HK$451 million / US$57.5 million – among the highest prices ever achieved, for diamonds of any colour, on the open market.
Sotheby’s now holds four of the top five highest prices for Fancy Vivid Blue diamonds at auction:
The De Beers Blue
Fancy Vivid Blue diamond
Step-cut, 15.10 carats, Internally Flawless
Sotheby’s, Hong Kong, April 2022
Sold for HK$ 450,925,000 / US$57,470,391 (US$3,806,090 per carat)
The Blue Moon of Josephine
Fancy Vivid Blue diamond
Cushion-shaped, 12.03 carats, Internally Flawless
Sotheby’s Geneva, November 2015
Sold for US$48,468,158 (US$4,028,941 per carat)
The Memory of Autumn Leaves
Fancy Vivid Blue Diamond
Pear-Shaped, 14.54 carats, Internally Flawless
Sotheby’s Geneva, May 2017
Sold for US$42,087,302 (US$2,894,587 per carat)
The Mellon Blue Diamond (now renamed ‘The Josie Blue’)
From the Bunny Mellon Collection
Fancy Vivid Blue diamond
Pear-shaped, 9.75 carats VVS2 Clarity
Sotheby’s New York, November 2014
Sold for US$32,645,000 (US$3,348,205 per carat)
About Sotheby’s
Established in 1744, Sotheby’s is the world’s premier destination for art and luxury. Sotheby’s promotes access to and ownership of exceptional art and luxury objects through auctions and buy-now channels including private sales, e-commerce, and retail.
Our trusted global marketplace is supported by an industry-leading technology platform and a network of specialists spanning 40 countries and 70 categories which include Contemporary Art, Modern and Impressionist Art, Old Masters, Chinese Works of Art, Jewelry, Watches, Wine and Spirits, and Design, as well as collectible cars and real estate.
Sotheby’s believes in the transformative power of art and culture and is committed to making our industries more inclusive, sustainable, and collaborative.
About Bulgari’s
Part of the LVMH Group, Bulgari was founded in Rome in 1884 as a jewellery shop. Known as the magnificent Roman jeweller and master of coloured gems, Bulgari has established a worldwide reputation for Italian excellence and enjoys renowned for its exquisite craftsmanship.
The company’s international success has evolved into a global and diversified luxury purveyor of products and services, ranging from fine jewels and high-end watches to accessories and perfumes, and featuring an unrivalled network of boutiques and hotels in the world’s most exclusive shopping areas.
Demonstrated through its numerous philanthropic partnerships, Bulgari deeply believes in innovating the present for a sustainable future through its commitment to Corporate Social Responsibility and giving back – to nature and to the community
