Some diamonds are super rare and cost a lot of money, way more than regular diamonds. These include colors like red, blue, and pink, which you don’t see every day.
Finding these diamonds is like a treasure hunt that takes place all over the world. The rarest ones can be worth millions of dollars and are often the stars of fancy jewelry collections.
A Guide to Rare Diamonds and Their Most Notable Examples
Some types of diamonds are so rare and expensive, they cost more than most houses! There are also famous diamonds that have cool stories and are worth millions.
We’re going to talk about these incredible diamonds and why they’re so valuable.
Red Diamonds
Red diamonds are the rarest of all colored diamonds. Only about 20 to 30 true red diamonds are known to exist worldwide, making them extremely valuable.
The first red diamonds were found in Brazil during the 19th century. It wasn’t until a farmer found a purplish-red diamond in the 1950s, known as “The Hancock Red,” that people really started paying attention to red diamonds.
Red diamonds are found in very few places. Most of them used to come from the Argyle mine in Australia, with a few others found in Brazil and Africa.
The Moussaieff Red Diamond is the biggest red diamond known, weighing 5.11 carats. Its bright red color and shape make it worth about $20 million, making it a standout among rare diamonds.
Pink Diamonds
Pink diamonds are super rare, even more so after the Argyle mine in Australia closed in 2020. Before it closed, pink diamonds made up less than 1% of the mine’s total diamond output.
Even so, most pink diamonds used to come from the Argyle mine, which supplied more than 90% of the world’s pink diamonds.
Pink diamonds have been around for a long time, with some of the earliest ones possibly coming from India. The Argyle mine’s discovery in the 1980s changed everything, making Australia the main source for these beautiful pink stones.
Now that the Argyle mine has closed, finding these diamonds has become even harder, with only a few other countries like Brazil and Russia occasionally finding pink diamonds.
The 59.60-carat Pink Star diamond is one of the most famous pink diamonds, selling for $71.2 million at an auction, making it the most expensive diamond ever sold.
Blue Diamonds
Blue diamonds are super rare, making up less than 0.02% of all diamonds. What makes them blue is a tiny bit of boron in them, which is hardly ever found.
A long time ago, people first found blue diamonds in India. These diamonds were so rare and beautiful that kings and queens loved them and used them to make their jewelry look amazing.
Most blue diamonds used to come from South Africa, like the really big Cullinan Diamond found in the late 1800s. Now, you might find blue diamonds in a few other places, but they’re still super hard to come across.
The Hope Diamond is the most well-known blue diamond. It weighs 45.52 carats, has a deep blue color with a hint of gray, and is worth about $250 million. Today, you can see it at the Smithsonian Museum in Washington, D.C.
Green Diamonds
Green diamonds are said to make up only 0.1% of all diamonds. This is because their green color comes from a very unique process that doesn’t happen often.
The first green diamonds are thought to have come from India. One of the oldest green diamonds we know about is the Dresden Green Diamond, which is over 40 carats and was found way back in the 18th century.
Most of the green diamonds found before came from places like Venezuela in South America, but these days they’re really hard to find there. Brazil and South Africa have found some green diamonds too, but these are very rare finds.
The Aurora Green Diamond is famous for being the most expensive green diamond ever sold, going for $16.8 million at an auction. It’s a really bright green diamond that’s over 5 carats, but its current owner is unknown.
Purple Diamonds
Purple diamonds are very rare, making up just 0.1% of all earth-mined diamonds. This makes them some of the most sought-after gems in the world.
People have been finding purple diamonds for a long time, with early finds possibly in India and Brazil. These diamonds were really special to those who found them, often ending up in royal jewelry because of their beautiful color.
Most purple diamonds come from a place in Siberia called the Mir kimberlite pipe. This spot has given us many purple diamonds, but it’s not the only place. There were also some found in the Argyle mine.
One of the most famous purple diamonds was the Elizabeth Taylor Diamond, owned by Elizabeth Taylor. It was a big, pear-shaped diamond that shone with a vivid purple-pink color, and it has been sold for $8.8 million at an auction.
Orange Diamonds
Orange diamonds rank just below red, pink, and blue diamonds in rarity. People have known about orange diamonds for a long time, but figuring out where they first came from is tricky.
Some think the first orange diamonds were found in India. Over time, these “fire diamonds” caught the eye of kings and collectors because of their bright color.
Most orange diamonds used to come from South Africa and the Kimberley mines. Later on, the Argyle mine in Australia also found orange diamonds until its closure.
The Pumpkin Diamond is one of the most famous orange diamonds. It’s a big, bright orange diamond that was found in South Africa. Today, you can see it at the Smithsonian in Washington D.C.
Yellow Diamonds
Yellow diamonds are not as rare as some other colors, but they’re still pretty uncommon. About 60% of all fancy colored diamonds are yellow.
Yellow diamonds might have first been discovered in India. People have come across yellow diamonds around the world, but nobody kept good records of where they all were discovered.
Then, the Kimberley mines in South Africa started finding lots of them, making South Africa a big name in yellow diamonds.
Today, you can find yellow diamonds in a few places. South Africa and Australia have been big sources, with Russia also finding some. Other countries like Angola and Brazil find them sometimes, but not as much.
The Tiffany Yellow Diamond is one of the biggest and most famous yellow diamonds out there. It’s a huge 128.54-carat diamond with a super bright yellow color
It was found in South Africa and is now at Tiffany & Co. in New York. Only a few people, like Audrey Hepburn and Lady Gaga, have ever worn it.
Black Diamonds
Black diamonds are really rare and cool. They get their color from things like graphite inside them, which doesn’t happen in most diamonds.
Black diamonds have been around for billions of years, but only started getting popular a while ago. Brazil was one of the first places where people found them, calling them “carbonados” because they looked burnt.
You can mostly find black diamonds in Brazil and the Central African Republic. They’re not like other diamonds because you find them in rivers and similar environments, not deep in the Earth.
The Enigma Diamond is one of the biggest and most famous black diamonds. It’s super big, over 500 carats, and some people think it might have come from space.
This diamond was sold at auction in 2022 for a staggering $4.3 million to crypto entrepreneur Richard Heart.
D Flawless Diamonds
D flawless diamonds are top-notch diamonds because they’re totally colorless and have no flaws. Very few diamonds are this perfect, making them super rare and valuable.
Long ago, people loved diamonds, but they didn’t grade them like we do now. It wasn’t until the 20th century that experts came up with a system to tell how colorless and flawless diamonds are.
You can find diamonds all over the world, but D flawless diamonds are super rare no matter where you look. Places like Russia, Botswana, South Africa, and Canada might find diamonds, but only a tiny number are D flawless.
One of the most famous diamonds isn’t just one diamond but came from a huge diamond called the Cullinan Diamond.
It was cut into smaller pieces, and some of those are D flawless, like the Great Star of Africa which is part of the British Crown Jewels.
