Rio Tinto’s inaugural diamond tender attracted buyers from the Kimberley through to Japan seeking to get their hands on the miner’s legacy inventory of pink and red Argyle diamonds.
Rio Tinto’s inaugural diamond tender attracted buyers from the Kimberley through to Japan seeking to get their hands on the miner’s legacy inventory of pink and red Argyle diamonds.
The collection, titled Born of this World, included pink and red diamonds sourced from Rio’s former Argle mine in the East Kimberley and yellow diamonds from the Diavik mine in Canada.
The collection featured 87 diamonds, in 48 lots, weighing a total 29.96 carats and attracted successful bidders from Australia, Europe, Japan, Singapore and elsewhere.
Rio’s Argyle mine ceased production in 2020 but the miner continues to sell its remaining inventory, manage secondary markets and ink creative collaborations with partners.
The only “Fancy Red” diamond in the collection was won by Kununurra-based bespoke jeweller Kimberley Fine Diamonds’ owner Frauke Bolten-Boshammer.
He was one of the first retailers to sell the Argle pink diamonds, according to Rio.
“I am delighted that this exceptional gem will stay in Australia, entrusted with Kimberley Fine Diamonds to continue its onward journey as one of the few highly coveted Fancy Red diamonds produced from the Argyle diamond mine,” Mr Bolten-Boshammer said.
“It is an extraordinary diamond of esteemed provenance, with a beauty that reflects its magnificent birthplace here in the East Kimberley region of Western Australia.”
Another successful bidder was distinguished Japanese jeweller Gimel who has been creating hand-crafting Argyle pink diamond pieces for the past 25 years.
“We have a long relationship with the beautiful and rare Argyle pink diamonds and we are looking forward to transforming our successful bids into works of art, to be treasured for future generations,” Gimel's lead designer Kaoru Kay Akihara said.
Rio Tinto Minerals chief executive Sinead Kaufman said they were delighted with the results from this new sale format for Rio Tinto’s diamonds business.
She said it delivered results that reflected the global demand for highly collectible natural coloured diamonds and the resulting value creation.
